Parenting 101
by R5RossLynch29
Summary: It's been a year since Ally gave birth to her and Austin's daughter, Maci Harmony. A year filled with many different emotions. A&A can agree that Maci is the best thing that's happened to them. After all, they're a family. What does the next year have in store for them? Well, it's Austin and Ally. Anything is possible. Especially with a baby in the mix. **SEQUEL TO PREGNANCY 101!**
1. Maci Turns One!

**A/N: HELLO AGAIN MY AWESOME PEOPLE! :) I missed all of you! I hope everyone had a great Christmas, if you celebrate it! :)**

**Now, here is the much anticipated first chapter of the Pregnancy 101 sequel, Parenting 101! It's a starting chapter, and until I get my chapters written out, the updates won't be as frequent, but I'll try my best. Plus, I've got exams coming up because of semester change, but hopefully that won't stop me from keeping you guys happy! :)**

**You'll want to read Pregnancy 101 first if you haven't read it before you read this one. It will make more sense haha**

**I know I was supposed to update last week, but things got crazy. Sorry!**

**To sort out some things here first, Maci is still really young because I want to show what they go through when she's still a baby, but I may possibly turn this into like a trilogy type thing, with another story after this one, when she's a teenager :) But that's if you guys like this story, and if I feel like writing another one haha.**

**Austin and Ally are 20, but they're turning 21 the same year Maci turns 1 because they just turned 19 right before Ally got pregnant, and turned 20 a few months after Maci was born. Just to clear things up. **

**Quinn and her family will be involved in this story! :D I know how much you guys love her and Sheridan, so her siblings will be in here too! Remember them being mentioned in the first story? :)**

**Now, I'll stop talking so you can enjoy chapter one! :)**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A, but I do own Quinn and her family, and Maci. Plus, any other characters not part of the actual show.**

**Genres: Family, Humour, Romance, Drama.**

* * *

Ally POV

"Ally, knock it off."

I silently giggled as I watched Maci play with Austin's hair. It was early in the morning, and I was giving Maci the honours of waking her daddy up by herself. She was having a great time, just sitting at his head with her hands in his blonde shaggy hair. I was sitting on the edge.

"Ally," he groaned again. "I'm serious, stop. I'm exhausted."

"It's not me," I told him.

He opened one eye tiredly and immediately smiled at the sight of Maci. "Well good morning to you too, you little shit." He sat up and scooped her up, setting her on his lap so she was facing him. "So are you my new wake up call? Mommy doesn't get to do it anymore?"

Maci just smiled and kicked her feet. She had definitely figured out the sound of our voices, that's for sure.

"Mommy still gets to do it," I grinned, leaning over. Austin gave me a quick kiss before getting out of bed.

"Guess what day it is," I said.

"Sunday?" He asked, bouncing Maci lightly.

"Guess again."

"Monday?"

My face dropped in anger. "I can't believe you."

He burst out laughing. "I'm totally kidding, Als." He crawled out of bed with Maci and kissed her cheek. "It's Maci's birthday! Happy first birthday, princess."

"Don't do that." I sighed with relief. "I actually thought you forgot it was her birthday."

"No way. Besides, you've been talking about this party for so long, how could I?"

He was right. We were having a party for Maci to celebrate, and I had been talking about it for a while. I just wanted everything to be perfect for her.

The past year had been extremely hectic, but Austin and I had made it through, with some fights here and there. Bottom line, raising a baby was NOT a piece of cake, especially so young. Austin was turning 21 in a couple of months, and I turned 21 two weeks after him. So, yeah, we'd be breathing birthdays for a while.

"Can you go feed Pancakes while I give Maci a bath?" I walked over to the joint door and into the baby's room. "I haven't been downstairs yet."

"Yeah, sure. Uh, Ally?"

"What?" I called as I rummaged through drawers.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" He walked into the doorway and gestured at Maci with a raised eyebrow, who was in his arms sucking on her fist.

Sucking on her fist was already one of her habits. I was surprised she hadn't gagged on it yet. I kept trying to pull it out of her mouth and tell her no, but she didn't listen.

"Oops," I said sheepishly as he handed her to me. "Sorry, Mace. Mommy's distracted."

"I tend to have that affect on the opposite sex," Austin smirked as he leaned against the doorway, shirtless with just his grey sweats on.

"Ha ha, funny guy."

He just smiled. "But in all seriousness, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm fine," I lied.

Austin looked unconvinced. "You just said you were distracted, so obviously you're not fine."

I sighed. "I'm stressed about a lot of things; Maci's party, the music video for that bullying campaign, writing a new song for the video, writing _your_ new song-"

"Okay, one: you need to breathe." Austin walked towards me. "And two: calm down. I'm right here, and you don't have to do that video until you're ready, you know that. My new song can wait a little longer, too."

"But it's already been a year! They'll be getting impatient," I said.

I was shooting a music video for the Make It Right foundation, which focused on bullying. The people there had told me I could start filming after Maci was born, but that was a year ago.

"Trust me, it'll be fine. They still want you." Austin rubbed my arm. "Now relax."

I took a deep breath. "Sorry. But you better go feed the dog; she's probably starving."

"Damn," he said before hurrying out the door.

I shook my head to clear it before I brought Maci to our bathroom. I took her out of her pyjamas and set her in her little bath that was in the big bathtub before kneeling down beside the big tub. "Alright, little lady, time to get you ready for your big day."

Maci just gurgled to herself and inspected her fingers while I turned the water on. She started turning her head from side to side when I was cleaning her.

"What are you doing?" I laughed.

"She misses me," Austin said from the doorway.

Maci's eyes lit up when she saw him and she threw her hands down into the water over and over while kicking her legs, soaking me with soapy water.

"Maci!" I exclaimed, grabbing a towel. "God damn it, Austin, you know she always does that when she sees you!"

Austin, however, found it quite hilarious, and he knelt beside me laughing his ass off. "Told you she missed me. And yeah, that's why it's funny."

Maci smacked her hands down again and splashed Austin. "Now who's laughing?" I retorted.

He rolled his eyes and grabbed the towel from the floor while I finished giving Maci her bath. "Here, take her while I get ready." I went to the sink and grabbed my toothbrush.

Austin wrapped Maci in her ducky towel and hauled her out of the tub into his arms. He dried her off by rubbing the towel with his hand gently.

"Hey, where aren't you dressed?" I asked him.

"I haven't had time yet, Als," he sighed.

I glared at him as I brushed my teeth.

"Don't look at me like that," he told me before walking out of the bathroom with Maci.

I finished with my teeth and started with my face.

"Maci, no, you don't put things like that in your mouth," I heard Austin say from the bedroom. I hurried out of the bathroom to see him taking his phone away from her.

"Don't give her your phone," I yelled at him.

"I didn't! She grabbed it from the pillow!"

"Pay better attention to her then. And I'm not going to tell you again, hurry up and get dressed; everyone will be here soon."

"Well your definition of soon must be different than mine because you told me they'd be here by three. And it's twelve now," Austin shot back. He was still in his damn sweats. "Besides, you're not even dressed either!"

"I have to get her birthday party ready! I'll dress after." I walked over and sat beside Maci, who was lying on the bed. "Were you trying to eat daddy's phone again? Hey, sweetie?"

Maci just smiled at me before kicking her legs everywhere. "That's right, you were, you little shit," I laughed.

"Hey babe, where's my chain?" Austin asked, opening drawers.

"I don't know. Last time I saw it was when you were wearing it last night."

"I swear I set it down on the bedside table, and now it's not there," he panicked. "It's a necessity!"

I shrugged. "You'll live without it for a day."

He groaned before pausing. "Hey, what's that?"

I looked at where he was pointing. Something was shining in Maci's little fist.

"Found it," I smiled.

Austin walked over to the bed. "You just love taking my things, don't you Mace? Take mommy's sometimes." He gently pried it out of her hand before bending over her and attacking her neck with little kisses, making her giggle. "You little sneak. How did you even take this without us noticing?"

"Get dressed," I ordered.

He sighed. "Yeah yeah, I'm going." He kissed Maci's cheek before walking over to the closet. "So, who's all coming to this party anyways?"

I scrolled through the messages on my phone while Maci sat on the bed playing with her little monkey. "We've been over this many times. My parents, your parents, Trish, Dez, Quinn, Sheridan, Jace, and Leah. Quinn's parents can't make it; they're on a business trip."

"I forgot. Damn, that's," he stopped as he counted on his fingers. "1, 2, 3, 4...10 people!"

"Oh my god, a whole ten? Lighten up, Austin; it's your daughter's first birthday," I snapped.

"Hey, cut me some slack, Ally, I just had a big ass concert last night! I just wanted some quiet." His voice was rising.

"It's not like you've never had a big concert before!"

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm not gonna fight with you."

"Then don't start a fight!"

"Look, why are you yelling at me?" Austin exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air.

I took a deep breath and sighed. "I don't know why I'm so bitchy today."

"Don't worry about it," he said as he turned his back to the closet. I could tell he was still upset about it.

It was quiet for a moment, except for the sound of Maci gurgling and hangers scratching as Austin pushed through his clothes before I quietly said, "I'm, uh, going to get Maci ready."

I picked her up and walked into her room. Setting her down on her changing table, I put a new diaper on her before kissing her head. "At least you're not mad at me," I said softly.

In response, she shoved her fist into her mouth and stared at me with her big brown eyes. She really looked like me, but I could see the same twinkle in her eyes that shone in Austin's.

I smiled lightly and tried to pick an outfit for her. I finally decided on a white t-shirt with a pink flower on it, a little pink tutu, white tights, and little pink ballet slippers.

As I was slipping the last of her outfit, which was her t-shirt, over her head, I felt a pair of strong arms encircle my waist from behind.

"I'm sorry," Austin mumbled into my neck before kissing it. He rested his forehead on the back of my neck. "I love you."

"I love you, too," I said as I slipped Maci's shirt over her head. I picked her up and turned around to face him. "But don't be sorry; I'm the one being snappy."

Austin smiled sympathetically. "Part of being a mom."

"Guess so," I told him before kissing him. When we pulled apart, Austin took Maci.

"Well, don't you look cute?" He beamed before kissing her cheek. I smiled at the sight. It was clear he absolutely adored her. He was just really good with kids in general.

Austin looked as hot as ever with black jeans and his chain, a white shirt, and a black blazer with his necklaces hanging down. His hair was shaggy and he smelled like my favourite cologne of his.

"You cleaned up nice," I commented.

"Yeah, now it's your turn," he grinned as we walked back into our room. "We'll go downstairs and start setting up."

"We?"

"Yeah." He gestured to Maci. "She's coming with me."

"You better pay damn good attention to her," I threatened. "Or I'll rip you a new one."

"Damn...motherhood changed you," Austin said. "Of course I'll watch her." He walked out before I could say anything else.

I quickly showered, blow dried my hair, and then went to the closet and after searching for a bit, I chose jean waist-high shorts and a white t-shirt with the London flag on it that I tucked into the shorts, letting it hang a bit baggy.

I curled my hair and did my makeup with a smokey eye before throwing on a navy blue fedora and matching ankle boots.

I hurried downstairs and just about tripped over Pancakes at the bottom. "Shit!"

She looked up at me, wagging her tail, before she trotted into the living room. I shook my head and went into the kitchen. Austin was hanging up streamers while Maci sat in her high chair in front of him, playing with her stuffed monkey.

"Everywhere else is decorated," he said. He smiled at me. "Beautiful as ever."

"Wow, that was quick," I commented. "And Thanks."

"Anytime." He taped the pink streamer up and jumped off the ladder. "There. Everything is done." He checked his watch. "It's 2:45."

"Perfect timing." I walked over to Maci. "Hello, missy, how's my favourite little girl?" I cooed as I picked her up. "Are you ready for your party? Hey sweetie?"

She giggled. I planted kisses all over her cheek before grabbing her pacifier and popping it into her mouth. She rested her head on my shoulder.

The doorbell rang. "And there are the first guests."

Austin went into the hallway to get the door while I tried to find candles for the cake. I heard him say, "What up!" so I figured it was Dez and Trish. Sure enough, the three walked into the dining room area a minute later.

"Hey Ally!" they said.

"Hey guys," I smiled.

Trish came over. "Happy birthday, cupcake! Come give Auntie Trish some love." I handed Maci to her. "I can't believe you're already one."

"Cupcake?" Dez said to Austin, who looked as confused as Dez did.

"Hey, it's better than Dez Junior," she glared pointedly at her boyfriend. "Besides, I like cupcakes."

"She loves it when I call her Dez Junior!" Dez protested.

"No, she doesn't!"

I glanced at Austin. "I think that's a new record for the amount of time it takes to start a fight."

"Most likely."

* * *

The rest of the guests arrived shortly after. Everyone was in the dining room doing who knows what while I was getting Maci's cake ready.

Quinn walked into the kitchen while I was sticking the '1' candle in. "Need some help?"

Quinn Bradshaw was my best girl friend, besides Trish. Austin and I had met her almost two years back when I was pregnant with Maci. Quinn was eighteen, turning nineteen, two years younger than Austin and I, and she had a daughter, Sheridan, whom she had at fifteen. Being a teen mom was what brought us together. She still helped me with a lot of things, even though she was young herself. Her older brother Jace and her younger sister Leah, along with their parents, also helped out as much as they could, which was amazing.

"Could you grab the paper plates and forks? Second top drawer from the fridge."

"So how was Maci this morning?" Quinn asked as she gathered everything.

"She was really good. I'm surprised actually, since she hasn't had a nap yet, but I'm sure she'll crash soon."

"Sheridan was showing her Nada," Quinn smiled.

"Really?" I laughed.

"Yeah, Maci was sitting in Austin's lap while Sheridan sat beside him and explained everything about Nada to her. Sheridan just loves that doll."

I grinned. "Won't be long before Maci wants one."

Quinn's sixteen-year-old sister Leah walked into the kitchen holding Maci. Jace was the same age as Austin and I.

Leah didn't look like Quinn or Jace at all. While Quinn and Jace both had straight blonde hair and were pale with blue eyes, Leah had long curly brown hair and latte coloured skin, with big green eyes. She looked like their dad.

"Austin told me to tell you to hurry up, he's starving," she informed me.

"Tell Austin I'll kick him in the ass if he's going to be like that. He can wait."

She laughed. "Will do." She turned to her older sister. "Oh, and Sheridan is wondering where you are."

"I told her where I was going," she sighed. "Alright, we're coming. Go tell everyone."

"For god's sake, I'm not a messenger," Leah muttered, but she left anyways.

"Come on; let's bring the cake out before everyone bites our heads off." I slowly carried the cake out while Quinn followed me into the dining room with the plates and cutlery.

Maci was in her high chair with Austin bending down beside her, and everyone else was standing around the table.

Austin did a little gasp to Maci when he saw me walk in with the cake. "Who's that, Mace? Is that mommy with your cake?"

Maci giggled and clapped her hands, causing everybody to laugh. "Alright, everybody sing!" I announced as I lit the candle. I set the cake down in front of Maci and she stared at the candle in awe.

After the singing finished, everyone clapped and Austin blew out the candle before kissing Maci's head.

"Picture time!" Austin's mom, my mom, Quinn, Leah and Trish announced at once. They all whipped out their cameras. The dads, Jace, and Dez just shook their heads.

"Oh dear lord," Austin muttered, but I just grinned.

When they had all taken their fair share of pictures, my mother came over to me. "Here, honey, I'll cut the cake. You've already done a bunch today."

"Thanks, Mom," I sighed with relief as I handed her the knife.

While she handed out cake, Sheridan ran over to me. "Ally! Guess what?"

"What?"

She put a finger on her lower lip and pulled it down to reveal a missing tooth. "I lost a tooth!"

"Oh wow! That's awesome, Sheridan," I smiled.

"It's my first one, but I'm not giving it to the tooth fairy. Unca Jace said she only gives money to boys," she informed me.

"Did he now?" I asked, glancing up to shoot Jace a look, who had heard what his niece said.

He started laughing. "I was just kidding, you goofball," he told Sheridan before scooping her up and holding her upside down, causing her to shriek with laughter.

I grabbed a piece of cake for Maci and set it down in front of her. "She's not going to eat that," Austin said.

Almost immediately, Maci threw her face down into the cake.

"Maci!" I exclaimed as everyone burst out laughing.

"Hey, I can do that too," Dez announced before sticking his face in his cake. Trish smacked him upside the head.

"You whack-a-doodle!" She told him. "You're 20!"

Maci pulled her face out and dunked her hands in it, licking it off her fingers with a shriek of joy.

"She's eating it," I told Austin.

"More like bathing herself in it," he replied.

The rest of the party was great, and Maci got a lot of new clothes. Good. Now I wouldn't have to shop for a while.

Quinn's family left first, then Trish and Dez, and our parents stayed to help clean up. Austin's mom gave Maci a bath before she fell asleep covered in cake. Shortly after, the house was empty.

I was gathering Maci's presents when Austin walked into the living room holding a sleeping Maci, who was sucking on her pacifier.

I smiled. "When did she crash?"

"Like, five minutes ago. She was just sitting in her high chair while I sang quietly when BOOM. Fast asleep."

I stood up. "Your voice does wonders."

He grinned. "The party went well."

"Yeah, I'm surprised she didn't get fussy at all."

"She's a happy baby," he grinned as he looked down at her.

"Do you mind putting her to bed? I'll finish up down here," I said.

"Yeah, of course." Austin gave me a kiss before heading upstairs.

As soon as I finished gathering the gifts, I flopped down onto the floor. Pancakes trotted into the room and lied down at my feet. "Hey girl," I said, scratching her head. "Long day," I sighed.

She rested her head on my knee, staring up at me. "What's up?"

She started wagging her tail. "Did you do something?" I asked her suspiciously.

With that, she jumped up and trotted away. "I'll never know with that dog," I said to myself. "Well, at least the party was a success. Now if only I remembered where I put Maci's bottle..."

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! It was pretty long haha but you guys probably like longer chapters :) I know not every guest was really mentioned at the party, because there were ten people, but they weren't super important to the chapter :p **

**Review it up, guys! :) I've got quite a bit of ideas up my sleeve ;)**

**Oh! Pregnancy 101 was nominated for the "Best Austin & Ally Story of 2012!" You guys are amazingly AWESOME! Seriously, without your support on that story, that most likely wouldn't have happened. I seriously love every single one of you, no lie, thank you for all of your support! :D :D MUAH! xo**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**


	2. Beaches Are For Rebels

**A/N: Chapter 2! :) I don't know why it wasn't working before to upload, it said my story was updated but the chapter wouldn't show. Le sigh... Sorry about that! :/**

**Now, quite a few of you are reviewing saying that you don't like it when Austin and Ally swear in front of Maci, or you don't like them calling her a little sh*t because it's inappropriate to be saying that around a baby... ****Yes, I'm aware they are saying that. I wrote the chapter, people haha. But I have them saying that for a reason because it's part of the story for a later chapter. I don't just randomly put swears in there for the heck of it, it's all for a reason later on.**

**Besides, my cousin and her husband call their five month old daughter a little sh*t ALL the time. They're joking, it's not like they actually mean it. But I'm sorry if I offended any of you, that wasn't my intentions.**

**Anyways, enjoy! Sorry for mistakes.**

**Disclaimer: Ya'll know...**

* * *

Ally POV

I was feeding Maci when Austin strolled into the kitchen. In swimming trunks.

"Um, why are you in swimming trunks?" I asked him slowly.

He grinned. "Because we, my dearest best friend, are going to the-"

"No."

"You didn't even know what I was going to say!"

"Yes, I did. You were going to say the beach," I replied.

"Okay, fine, I was going to say that. But why not? It's a nice day!" Austin told me. "And it'll be good for Maci to get out."

It was in fact nice out, since it was the first week of May, but that didn't do anything to help Austin's situation.

"Not at the beach, it won't. The beach-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know you hate beaches; you have bad experiences with them, a crab got tangled in your hair last time, blah blah blah. But Maci's never been." He sat down beside me at the table. "She wants to go. Right, Mace?"

She swallowed the last of her food before clapping her hands.

"There, it's settled. We're going."

"Austin," I whined.

"Now what?"

"The beach is for rebels," I told him as I went to put the dirty dishes in the sink. I grabbed an orange and leaned against the counter.

"For rebels?" Austin said as he played with Maci's feet. "How is it for rebels, Ally? Just answer me that."

Damn, now I had to think of something. "Well, uh... All the teenagers hang out there and stir up trouble."

Austin started laughing and pulled Maci out of her high chair. "You and I were teenagers once, and look at the trouble we caused."

"Yeah, you and Dez _still_ cause trouble," I said with a raised eyebrow.

He walked over to me. "Please, Ally? I haven't had a lot of free time to spend with my two favourite girls lately." He gave me a pained look.

It was true. It seemed like he was always at a concert or a CD signing lately, and when he wasn't busy with work, I was either helping Quinn with renovating her room or running around to appointments with the Make It Right foundation on the other side of Miami with Maci for the video campaign.

I looked at him for a moment before I sighed. "Oh Fine, we'll try it."

"Yes!" Austin beamed before kissing me quickly, and then kissing Maci's head. "She'll have fun, I promise."

"If anything happens, or I even _think_ something is going to happen, or if she gets cranky, or-"

"We're coming straight back," Austin finished with a roll of his eyes. "Relax and loosen up, babe."

"Don't tell me what to do," I glared. "Come on, Mace, let's go get ready."

I took her from Austin and headed upstairs with her. She gurgled until I set her down on her changing table. She stared at me after that.

"What?" I asked.

Maci clapped and then stared at me again, sucking on her fist.

"Alright, you goof," I smiled before opening her top drawer. I grabbed her pink one piece that had a tutu attached and flowers on it, and her pink sunhat. I put her in a Pull Up before changing her into her swimming stuff.

After covering her in sunscreen, I filled a tote bag with my things and hers before picking her up and hurrying back through the connecting door to mine and Austin's room.

"Okay, here's your monkey, Mace. Play with him nicely until I'm ready." I lied her down on the bed and handed her the monkey before running to the closet and grabbing my red bikini and white crocheted cover up that went to my mid stomach.

I changed and French braided my blonde and brown hair down my back, slipped on flip flops, and once again scooped Maci up before heading downstairs to find Austin.

He was already in the SUV when I walked out. "Let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go!"

"I'm going as fast as I can!" I exclaimed.

"What? No, I'm singing to the music," he told me. "But now that you mention it, let's go!"

I rolled my eyes and strapped Maci in before jumping in the front with Austin. He practically floored it out of the driveway.

"Jeez, what's the rush?" I asked.

"I just want to get to the beach."

"We'll get there in plenty of time."

He glanced in the rear view mirror. "Maci's sleeping."

"Are you kidding me?" I said as I turned around in my seat. Sure enough, she was fast asleep sucking on her thumb.

"Great," I groaned. "Now what are we supposed to do? I can't bring a sleeping baby to the beach."

"We have the umbrella; she can sleep under that so the sun doesn't get to her."

I sighed. "Worst timing ever."

When we arrived at the beach, I was glad to see that it wasn't too busy, but there were definitely people there. Austin parked and we got out.

He opened the backdoor. "She's still asleep," he whispered.

"Well, too late now. Guess she'll have to sleep on me until she wakes up." I slowly and gently undid Maci's buckles while Austin grabbed everything else.

Hauling my sleeping daughter into my arms, the three of us started down the boardwalk.

"I already see rowdy teenagers," I complained.

"Ally. You're almost 21. I'm sure you can handle a few teenagers," Austin patiently told me.

"If one of their little footballs or whatever comes within even fifteen feet of Maci, I'll backhand them like Chris Brown. No one messes with my baby."

"I believe you will," Austin told me.

We found a spot and he set the umbrella up with a chair and towels underneath. I sat down slowly and fixed Maci's position on my shoulder.

I could see the desperation in my boyfriend's eyes, and I sighed. "Go swim."

"Are you sure? I don't want to leave you two."

"We're fine. Besides, you were in a huge hurry to get here," I said.

"I won't be out there long, I promise. Maci might wake up anyways." He gave me a quick kiss and jogged down the beach towards the water.

I leaned against the back of the chair and made myself comfortable. Slipping on my aviators, I took in the sight in front of me. Teenagers running around. Parents with their kids, building sandcastles or swimming. Couples walking down the beach hand in hand.

It made me think of when Maci got older; when Austin and I would be able to do more things with her, when she would be able to talk, to walk and crawl. It was scary to think it wouldn't be long before any of that happened. Wow, being a mother really changed your outlook on things.

After about half an hour, Maci stirred and her eyes fluttered open. She yawned and I smiled. "Hi, sleepyhead."

I grabbed her blanket and slid down onto the towels, lying it down. Carefully lying her down on the blanket, I grabbed her monkey.

"Guess who missed you while you were sleeping?" I cooed as I gently shook it above her head. She giggled in happiness. "Yes he did. Did you miss him too? Hey?"

I bent down and nibbled her cheek. When I sat up straight and handed her the monkey, I saw that I was getting a few stares as people walked by.

One lady even had the nerve to shake her head in sympathy at me, and I looked away quickly. Yes people, I had a baby. Yes, I was young. Jesus Christ, as if I didn't get enough attention from being with Austin Moon.

I looked towards the water in time to see Austin jogging out of it. It was a total cliché, but it was honestly like he was in slow motion as he raked his hand through his wet blond hair. His tan, muscular body was dripping with water. Damn, he was gorgeous.

"Hey, look who's awake," he smiled as he came over. I was finishing putting more sunscreen on Maci. She smiled when she saw her daddy. "I knew she wouldn't sleep the whole time."

"How's the water?" I asked.

"Amazing. You should come in," he said.

"I can't; I have to watch Maci."

"She can come with us, it won't hurt her."

I glanced behind him towards the ocean. "Mmm, no thanks; I chose life."

Austin rolled his eyes. "The sharks won't eat you, Als." Before I could say anything, he bent down and scooped Maci up before walking towards the water.

"Austin! Are you crazy?" I yelled before jumping up and hurrying after him.

"Very," he called back.

"She's only one, Austin. She can't even walk yet! She'll be shark bait!"

"Ally, calm down. Jeez, I'm not putting her in the water." Before I could yell at him again, he sat down on the shore where the water was gently sliding up the sand and kept Maci on his lap.

"Austin," I said nervously.

"Just sit down." I reluctantly sat down beside him. "Be quiet and watch before you have a panic attack. We don't want a repeat of last time, especially in public." He carefully took Maci off his lap and sat her down on the sand.

I expected her to cry as soon as the water crept up and touched her so I was ready to take her back to the umbrella, but she didn't. Instead, she actually started giggling and smacking her hands down into the shallow water.

"Ha! I knew it!" Austin beamed in victory. "You owe me twenty bucks!"

"I don't owe you squat; we didn't bet on anything."

"Damn, I thought I might've had you there," he frowned.

"I'm not stupid. You, on the other hand..."

"Hey!"

"I'm just kidding," I smiled before kissing him on the cheek. "You know I love you."

"I'm not so sure anymore," he said, but I saw a quirky smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Maci crawled closer to the water. "Maci, no!" I quickly pulled her back. Yes, Maci could crawl, and when I said crawl, I meant _crawl_. Everywhere.

She stared at us from her spot in front of us before reaching her hand out to tap Austin's leg.

"What?" He said. I watched as she tapped the same spot again.

"I think she's trying to tell you something," I smiled.

"Do you want me to play in the water with you?" Austin asked. "Hey?"

She kicked her legs, making the cool blue water splash up. "I'll take that as a yes," he laughed.

While Austin was lying down on his stomach playing with Maci, I snuck off to the towel and grabbed my phone. I was in a perfect spot for a picture, which I happily took. Like father, like daughter.

When I got back to them, Austin took my phone from me. "I wanna take a picture of you two."

I shrugged and scooped Maci up. "Where's daddy, Maci?" Austin coaxed her into looking at the camera. After he took the picture, I took it back. "Now we _all_ need a picture. Together," I grinned.

Austin curled his arm around my waist and I took the picture. "It's perfect," he said. "Look. Maci's even smiling."

"I love it," I smiled.

Maci shrieked from the sand, and I looked down to see her grinning up at us. She looked so adorable with her little hat. I couldn't help it; I burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Austin asked.

"I'm just really happy," I told him. And I meant it. I had Austin and Maci.

What's not to love?

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed it, I thought it was pretty cute :) Updates won't be as frequent because I need to get some chapters done first before they come faster, and I've got exams coming up so until then, hang in there! I update as fast as I can :)**

**Review it up!**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**


	3. The Parents Turn 21

**A/N: Hey! Thanks for your reviews guys, I love every single one of you! :)**

**Now, I know I've already done a birthday chapter two chapters ago, but I feel like Austin and Ally's birthday's need to be celebrated too! I think you guys will like this chapter! I have a feeling :)**

**So, both of them will be in this chapter, although Ally is two weeks younger than Austin. Let's say Austin's birthday is May 19th, and Ally's is June 2nd haha.**

**Enjoy! This is a sort of a filler until the story really picks up :)**

**Disclaimer: Sigh. Everybody knows. I don't own "Once Upon a Dream" from Sleeping Beauty. Beautiful song :) I love No Secret's version the most.**

* * *

Ally POV

"Psst."

Austin groaned.

"Austin."

"What?" He whined tiredly.

"Guess what?"

"Ally, go back to sleep."

"No, it's time to get up."

I heard him snoring again, so I threw the covers off of me. Well, he asked for what was about to happen.

Cracking my knuckles, I grabbed one of my pillows and pounced on my boyfriend, smacking the shit out of him with it.

"Get. Up. Now. Austin," I puncuated with every hit, causing him to swear.

"Ally, knock it off!" He yelled angrily as he tried to grab my wrists, but I dodged his hands.

"No, you have to get up!" I told him with a pillow-hit to the face.

"Ow!" He finally grabbed my wrists and tried to wrestle me down on to the bed. It was kind of funny how Maci was sleeping through the door in the other room while her parents were attacking each other in this room.

I didn't notice that Austin was on top of me, my arms pinned under his hands.

"Damn, even when you're half asleep, I still manage to lose," I panted.

Austin smirked. "You'll never win."

I rolled my eyes. "At least you're awake now."

"Why did you wake me up anyways?"

"It's your birthday, you idiot!" I laughed. "It should be the other way around."

He softened. "Oh, right! I forgot."

"I see that." I leaned up and kissed him. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks," he smiled. He let me go and I rolled out from under him onto the ground. "I can't believe you didn't want a party. I wanted to plan another awesome time!"

He shrugged. "Just me, you, Trish, Dez, and Maci is enough for me. I'm going out with my parents later."

"Okay, that's fine." I strolled over to the door and peeked into Maci's room. She was still asleep.

"She's still out cold."

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Austin asked seductively.

I smiled. "Why yes, I think I am."

We looked at each other for a split second before both bolting to the bathroom door. We got there at the same time, which resulted in a who-can-get-through-the-door-first fest. "It's my turn to go first," Austin complained.

"Is not! You had a shower first yesterday, so it's _my_ turn."

"It's my birthday!"

"It's _my_ birthday in two weeks!"

"That does nothing. So I win," he grunted as he tried to push me to the side. He had the advantage of being seven inches taller than me, but I was quicker.

And apparently that wasn't enough, because he managed to push me to the side and get through the door, shutting it behind him.

"Screw you!" I called.

"No thanks," he replied sweetly.

I sighed and went to make the bed while he took what I figured would be thirty minute shower since he always took forever. Like seriously? Mine were fifteen minutes, and my hair was way longer than his.

My phone buzzed from the bedside table.

_Do you have any boxes big enough to fit a grown man?_ It was from Trish.

This can't be good, I thought. _Um, no? Why do you need a box that big?_ I texted back.

_So I can shove Dez into it and ship him off to Zimbabwe!_

I sighed. Here we go._ Not really what a normal person would want to do to their boyfriend. What did he do now?_

_He stuck my curling iron in a tub of paint thinking it was a paintbrush! Now it's ruined. _I could practically hear the rage in her reply.

_How the hell do you mistake a curling iron for a paintbrush? _I asked.

_Because it has the words 'Beautiful Brush' scrawled across the side. That's the company! How dumb can you get?! It doesn't even have bristles!_

_Well, no, I don't have any big boxes. Even if I did, you wouldn't be getting it, T. Make him buy you a new one._

_I am. But I g2g, I'll see you guys later._

_Bye!_

I put my phone away and waited for Austin to get out of the shower. When he finally did, he smirked.

"It's all yours," he said.

"Wow, twenty five mintues. A new record," I teased as I walked past his toweled form.

"Ha ha," he replied to my laughing self as I closed the door.

When I got out, I washed my face and brushed my teeth before walking out. Austin was dressed in jeans with his chain, a grey graphic t-shirt, and blue high-tops with his necklaces. He was fixing his hair in the mirror.

"It looks good," I said, walking to the closet.

"As my girlfriend and best friend, you're obligated to say that."

"I promise you, it _does_ look good," I assured him.

I changed into white jeans, a green flowing tank top, and black wedge ankle boots. After blow drying my hair and curling it, I did my makeup and went to check on Maci. She was still asleep.

"She's still sleeping," I told Austin, shocked.

He shrugged. "It's still pretty early."

"Yeah, but she's usually up by now."

"Just let her sleep. Besides, it gives us some alone time," he added with a grin as he snaked his arms around my waist and bent to kiss me.

He was irresistable. I giggled against his lips and pressed against him harder. I backed him against the edge of the bed and pushed him down.

"Someone's anxious," Austin chuckled as I crawled on top of him.

"What can I say? I'm a sucker for blonde rockstars," I smiled.

He groaned and leaned up to capture my mouth in a searing kiss. He ran his hands underneath my shirt and flipped us so I was underneath.

"Smooth," I giggled.

"You love it," he murmured against my lips as he slid his hands under my shirt, making me shiver lightly.

I tangled my hands in his hair and I brought my one knee up to rest against his waist as our tongues fought for dominance. Just as his hands went for my bra strap, I heard crying.

Austin broke off our makeout session and rested his head on my shouder. "Damn it," he growled.

I burst out laughing and kissed him quickly before he slid off me, pulling me up. "I'm telling you, she has the worst timing."

"Hell yeah she does."

We walked into her room and I scooped up her crying form. "Good morning, sweetie. Have a good sleep?"

I grabbed her pacifier and stuck it in her mouth. Her crying was reduced to sniffles, and I turned to Austin. "Do you mind getting her ready? I need to double check a few things downstairs."

"Nope," he said, holding his hands out for her. I handed Maci to her dad and hurried out of the other door in her room that went straight to the hallway instead of to our bedroom.

"Pancakes, come get your breakfast," I called when I got to the kitchen. She hurried into the room as I was pouring her food. Pancakes was big now. When I say big, I mean big as in, above my knees in height and about five feet in length big.

She barrelled into me, sending me onto the floor. "Seriously, Pancakes?"

She stood over me wagging her tail before prodding me with her nose. "I'm fine, just slow down next time," I laughed, scratching her ears as I got up.

While she ate, I went to the basement and made sure Austin's cake was in the freezer. Trish was supposed to have had brought it over while we were away the day before, but it was Trish, so I just wanted to make sure. But it was there, which was great.

Now for the present. I opened the washing machine and saw that it was still sitting in there where I had placed it before. I know, hiding a present in the washing machine? But Austin was "allergic" to laundry, so he never came close to the washing machine or dryer.

I went back upstairs just as Austin entered the kitchen with Maci in his arms.

"I should have known," I smiled as I surveyed her outfit. She was wearing a pink t-shirt that said 'Daddy's Little Princess' across the front with a black zip up hoodie, jeans, and little pink hightop shoes. She had a little pink clip in her blonde hair.

"What?" Austin laughed. "She looks perfect!" He kissed Maci's cheek before setting her down on the ground. She crawled over to Pancakes, who was lying by the table. Pancakes was very protective of Maci, and Maci loved Pancakes. Well, she loved pulling her ears and tail especially.

"So what's the plan?" Austin asked.

"Trish and Dez should be here any minute." A knock sounded at the door. "Or second."

I went into the hallway and opened the front door. "Hey guys."

"Hey!" Trish and Dez greeted as I let them in. Austin and Dez did their handshake when we got back to the kitchen, and our friends wished Austin a happy birthday.

"Trish didn't ship you to Zimbabwe, Dez?" I grinned as we all moved into the living room. Trish sat down on a chair and was playing with Maci on her lap.

"Zimbabwe? You were going to ship me to _Zimbabwe?_" Dez squeaked, turning to Trish.

"Zimbabwe?" Austin said, confused.

"Long story," Trish and I said at the same time.

We chatted for a bit before Dez randomly said, "Should I dye my hair green?"

We all looked at him. "No way. Why would you dye your hair green?" Austin asked.

"That would look odd," I said.

"I'll chop your head off like the Queen of Hearts if you dye it green," Trish glared.

"I don't know; I thought it would make me look like a tree," Dez told us. "Because I'm tall."

"And you want to look like a tree because..." I said slowly.

"Trees are cool."

Austin started to say something, but stopped himself with a shake of his head. "Just don't do it, dude."

"Fine." Dez brightened. "How about pink? I could lift up one leg and rock a flamingo look and-"

"No!" We all exclaimed.

Dez pouted and crossed his arms. "Jellybean destroyers."

"Excuse me?" Austin said.

"Who is this?" Trish asked me, jerking a thumb at her boyfriend.

"You know who I am! We've known each other for six years. It's me, Dez!" Dez said.

Trish handed Maci to Dez and shot out of her chair. "I need a drink; maybe two. I'll be back." She walked out of the room into the kitchen.

"Your auntie is crazy. She doesn't even know who I am," Dez said to Maci, who looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Oh dear god," Austin mumbled from beside me, making me stifle a laugh.

After Trish was done with her drinks, we all went back to the kitchen for cake. I went down to get it and came back up with the candles lit.

I set the cake in front of Austin and Maci, who was sitting in his lap, and we all sang happy birthday to him. Trish took a few pictures.

"Thanks," Austin smiled before blowing out the candles. "I love you guys." He pressed a kiss to Maci's head, and I smiled.

"Happy birthday, Austin," I said before kissing him quickly. I saw a flash go off.

"I had to, it was too cute," Trish smiled, her camera in hand.

After we finished with our cake, Austin opened presents. Trish got him a new pair of purple hightops and Dez got him a shirt that was obviously custom made because it had a huge picture of Dez on the front with the words 'I Love My BFF!" on it.

"Ally, are you kidding me?" Austin exclaimed when he opened mine. I smiled when he pulled out the slips of paper. "_McFly tickets?!_"

"I know you thought the concert was sold out already, but I managed to score tickets."

"This is awesome! Thanks, Als," Austin told me before kissing my cheek. "All of the presents are awesome; you guys are the best."

Trish and Dez stayed for a bit before they had to leave.

"So how was your birthday get together?" I asked.

Austin smiled. "I had you, Mace, and my best friends. It was perfect."

* * *

_"I know you, I danced with you once upon a dream,"_ I quietly sang to myself as I put my earrings in. I just finished watching Sleeping Beauty with Maci, and the song was now stuck in my head. It was a beautiful song, though, so who cares.

_"The gleam in your eyes is so familiar_- oh god!" I was cut off by arms sliding around my waist from behind and lifting me off the ground.

"Happy birthday, Als!" Austin said happily as he spun me around.

"Austin, put me down!" I laughed.

He finally did and dipped me before he planted a firm kiss on my lips.

"What was that for?" I smiled when we broke apart, lightheaded.

"Well, I figured since you were singing a princess song, I'd sweep you off your feet like Prince Charming," he said. "Plus, it's your birthday. I can't believe you're 21."

I giggled. "You make me sound old. You're 21, too. Technically, you're older than me."

"Touché." He flopped down onto the bed. "Sorry I wasn't here this morning when you woke up. I wish I never had to go to the studio last minute."

I shrugged. "It's fine, you can't help it. I watched a movie with Mace anyway."

"Where is she?"

"Sleeping."

"Ah. Well, Trish and Dez said for us to call them when we want them to come over, so when is that, exactly?" He asked me.

"Maci's probably going to be out for a while, but whenever is fine." I grabbed the baby monitor and headed downstairs, Austin following.

"I'm making a birthday supper tonight, so you either need to leave for a while, or stay out of the kitchen," he told me.

I raised an eyebrow. "Are you now? You don't have to do that."

"I want to. And I'm starting like right away, so no offence, but get out now."

I raised my hands to my shoulders. "Alright, I'm going. I'll be upstairs." I turned around and went back up the stairs, not knowing what I was going to do. I decided I would read for a bit.

I grabbed my book and jumped onto the bed, making myself comfortable. I made it about ten minutes before I had to stop. "I have absolutely no motivation to read right now." A completely random idea hit me. "I know..."

I crawled off the bed onto the floor and took my shoes off. "Alright, Ally, you can do this. It's just a cartwheel," I told myself. "It can't be that hard."

I still didn't know how to do a cartwheel, so I thought I would teach myself now. Almost like a birthday present to me from me. Plus, our room was huge, so I had tons of room to be flipping around.

My first attempt was a complete fail. I got as far as putting my hands on the ground before I fell on my knees. "Okay, maybe it is pretty hard," I groaned as I got up to try again. "I am going to get this. All you do is put your hands down and turn sideways back onto your feet. It should be a piece of cake!"

I managed to turn somewhat the second time, but my legs still weren't straight. "Damn it!" I said loudly before throwing my hand over my mouth. I forgot Maci was still sleeping in the next room.

I didn't know how long I was practicing for, but as soon as I put my hands down to do another cartwheel, I heard Austin's voice at the doorway. "What the hell are you doing?"

I yelped in surprise as I flipped over. When I was straight again, I was just about ready to yell at him when I stopped. "I just did a cartwheel." I slowly smiled and jumped up and down. "I just did a freaking cartwheel!"

Austin started laughing. "I saw it. It was really good."

"I'm still mad at you for sneaking up on me like that, but that helped me do a cartwheel, so whatever!" I exclaimed as I threw my arms around his neck.

He hugged me back. "Let's see you do it again."

"I probably just had beginner's luck," I said but I went to the other side of the room anyway. I managed to do one again.

Austin clapped. "Nah, I think you've got it. Is that what you've been doing up here for the last two hours?"

"Yeah, I got bored." I slipped my shoes back on.

"Come downstairs," Austin told me.

"Is supper ready?"

"Just come downstairs."

I looked at him curiously, but followed him downstairs anyways. When we got to the kitchen, I found Dez, Trish, and my parents in there surrounded by a table full of food. My mom was holding Maci, who was awake. "Surprise! Happy birthday!" They all shouted.

I grinned at all of them. "You guys did all of this for me?"

"Of course! But it was all Austin's idea," my mom said.

I had the best boyfriend ever, hands down.

"When did you guys get here? I didn't even hear you come in. And when did Maci get up?"

"Maybe an hour ago. And she got up like, twenty minutes ago," Trish said. She hugged me. "Happy birthday, girlfriend!"

I laughed. "Thanks, T." I looked at the food. "This looks delicious."

"Austin made it," my dad told me. "He's quite the chef."

Austin blushed. "I'm no expert, but I try."

I hugged him around his waist. "You did great. Thank you, all of you. This is the best birthday ever."

We all ate, and it was pretty funny watching Dez trying to feed Maci and himself at the same time. He accidentally fed himself Maci's food a couple of times.

When we finished eating, my mom, Trish, Austin, and Dez cleaned up while my dad and I watched Maci in the living room.

"Good birthday, honey?" My dad asked me.

"It was great," I told him as I scooped Maci up onto my lap.

"She sure looks like you," my dad smiled at Maci, who was sucking her fist. "Except for the blonde hair."

"Yeah, I figured she'd be blonde." I peppered her cheek with kisses. "She's my mini Austin."

"I can tell you one thing. That girl's going to be a beauty when she gets older," my dad said. "Guys will be all over her."

"Don't tell Austin that," I giggled. "He'll freak."

"Don't tell me what?" Austin said as the other four strolled into the living room. He sat down beside me on the couch and Maci crawled onto his lap.

"That, uh, Maci took your other chain and now I don't know where she put it," I quickly said.

"She what?" He bent down and looked at Maci. "Where is it, missy? Did you take my chain?" He teased her. She giggled and kicked her legs in his lap.

"I'll find it somewhere," I told my boyfriend. That was close.

"Present time!" My mom said happily before handing me one. "This is from me and your father."

I opened it to find a new dress and some jeans from Forever 21, and quite a bit of money. "Thanks Mom and Dad," I smiled. "I love it."

Trish got me a new hot pink sweater from Aritzia and Dez got me a picture of himself in a frame decorated with macaroni noodles, which I promised I would hang up in our bedroom.

"You ready for mine?" Austin was practically bouncing in his seat, causing Maci to bounce with him. It was quite a hilarious sight, to be honest.

"Yes," I laughed.

He handed Maci to my dad, and hurried out of the room before coming back with a purple box. He handed it to me. "Happy birthday, Als."

I smiled and ripped the wrapping paper off. When I opened the box, I gasped. "No. Freaking. Way." I squealed and whipped out the pair of gorgeous boots. They were knee high, brown with a four inch heel, and real leather. They also had a buckle around the top. "I've wanted these for months!"

Austin grinned. "Remember that time your mom was babysitting Maci and we stopped at the mall to get her a new stroller after my concert?" I nodded. "Well, after you finished ranting about how amazing those boots were and went off to the washroom, I may have snuck off and paid for them."

"But how did I not see them?"

"I hid them in the box that was holding the stroller before you got back from the washroom, and when we got home, I quickly ran upstairs and hid them somewhere else before you opened the stroller box," he announced. "I'm pretty proud, if I do say so myself."

I shook my head. "You, sir, are full of surprises." I jumped up and hugged him. "But thank you, I love them!"

"Smart thinking, Austin," my mom commented. "I would've never thought of that."

"Thanks," he smiled.

"I may or may not break into your house and borrow those when you're not home," Trish spoke up. "Like I said, may or may not."

"If you ask, I may or may not let you wear them," I told her with a raised eyebrow. "Like I said, may or may not."

"Touché."

After everyone left, Austin put Maci down for her nap before coming back downstairs to where I was wearing my new sweater, jeans, and boots. He laughed as soon as he looked at me. "That didn't take long."

I surveyed my outfit. "I think I look pretty hot."

"Oh, trust me, you look better than hot." He came over and wrapped his arms around me. "You look beautiful."

I smiled and kissed him. "Thanks."

"Happy birthday, Als."

* * *

**A/N: They're now both 21! :) Wow, that was long haha. Hope you guys enjoyed it, I really loved writing it!**

**I put the part with the cartwheel in there because remember that in the first episode of the show, Ally said she can't do a cartwheel, so I thought it would be fun for her to not bother trying to do one until she's 21. On her birthday. In her bedroom. Haha, so I hope you guys liked that little fun part :)**

** In case you are still confused, Ally's birthday is two weeks after Austin's. I added some Auslly in there, just because I love you guys, and seriously, who doesn't love Auslly? :D **

**Who's excited for Girlfriends and Girlfriends in a couple weeks!? MEEE! :D :D Auslly is finally happening! I wish we didn't have to wait for two weeks, but it's better than nothing haha.**

**Review it up! Update will be as soon as I can, but it shouldn't be long! I've got about five chapters planned out, but they aren't written yet.**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**


	4. What Are You Going To Do?

**A/N: Hey! Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, you're all amazing, as I say everytime! :) It's true though! I'm updating earlier than I thought, but I have exams now and last minute assignments to do since the first semester is ending, so the next update may not be for a while. Sorry about that guys, but I'll try really hard! :)**

**Enjoy this chapter, it's a bit shorter than the others, but it's rather good, I think :) It'll make you all happy! I hope... haha**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A, although I do own Jace.**

* * *

Austin POV

"Hey Ally?" I called up the stairs.

She appeared at the top a few seconds later. "What's up?"

"Dez just called me and asked if I could go over to his place and help him fix a leaky sink." I immediately felt guilty for lying to her, but I needed a reason to go over there.

Ally started down the stairs. "Oh, okay. I'll probably be gone to another meeting for the bullying video by the time you get back, so I'll pick something up for supper on my way home after I get Maci from your parents' place."

"I won't be that long, hopefully. Fixing a sink shouldn't take longer than an hour," I said, mentally slapping myself. Actually, it was more like a mental punch. "But you know Dez," I added, laughing nervously.

She looked at me curiously. "Are you okay, Austin?"

"Oh yeah, I'm fine! Never been better," I told her quickly before bending to kiss her. "I'll see you later."

"Alright," she said slowly, still watching me. I had to get out of there before I blew it.

I grabbed my jacket and keys in the hallway before hurrying out the door to my SUV. As soon as I was in the driver's seat, I sped off to Dez's.

I hated lying to anyone, especially Ally, but I wouldn't have had a reason to leave the house so suddenly if I hadn't. I did need to see Dez, yes, but it wasn't about a leaky sink. It was about something much more important than that, and I was freaking out over it.

When I hit a red light, I pulled out my phone and tapped Jace's number in. He picked up on the third ring.

"Hey Austin, what's up?" He said.

"Do you think you could go over to Dez's right now?" I asked.

"Uh, yeah, sure. What's wrong, man?"

"Nothing's wrong. Well, not really, but it's not bad. Well, not really bad, but-"

"Dude, you're freaking me out. Look, I'll be there in fifteen," Jace cut me off.

"Thanks Jay, I owe you."

"No problem." We hung up and I waited for a bit before the light finally turned green.

When I got to Dez's, I pulled into his driveway and jumped out. He opened the front door before I had time to knock. "Hey buddy."

"How'd you know I was here?"

"Jace called and said you told him to come over here so I figured something's on your mind. I was watching out the window." He opened the door wider so I could pass by him. His turkey that I can never remember the name of ran past my feet into the living room, followed by Jeffrey, his pig.

"Penelope Frances Barbara Louise Turkeyson!" Dez yelled. _That's_ the name. God, I have to write that down somewhere. "You do not peck at Jeffrey's tail! It is not a curly fry; we've been over this many times before!" Dez looked at me. "Kids. They never learn. I mean, do you know how hard it is to be a mother?"

"Dez. I'm a dad of an actually human baby!"

"I'm a mother of a turkey and pig. You're point?"

I just shook my head and went into the dining room.

Dez opened the fridge and tossed me a root beer. "How'd you manage to get out of the house?"

"I told Ally I was fixing a leaky sink at your place," I admitted.

"And she bought it?" He asked disbelievingly.

"Yeah," I said slowly.

"Dude, when have I ever fixed a leaky sink? Or when have you, for that matter." He sat down at the table and cracked open his coke.

"Damn, you're right. Well, it didn't faze her and she bought it, so let's just leave it at that."

There was a knock at the door and Dez yelled, "Yeah!"

Jace came into the dining room a few seconds later. "Hey."

"Hey man," we greeted. Dez handed him a drink as well.

"So what's the important news, Austin?" Jace asked. "You sounded crazy on the phone."

"I, uh, I'm..." I looked down at my hands before muttering the rest of my sentence incoherently. I couldn't do it.

"What?" Dez asked as him and Jace strained to hear.

"I said! I'm..."

"Dude, speak up!"

"I'm thinking about proposing to Ally!" I burst out. After realizing what I did, I cleared me throat and laughed nervously.

I looked at the other two, who were staring at me with shocked expressions. I rubbed the back of my neck. "Uh, now would be a good time for you guys to say something. Anything."

"Wow," Dez said.

I jumped up. "Seriously? That's all you have to say?" Dude, I'm ready to ask my girlfriend to marry me and you say _wow?!_"

"Austin, breathe," Jace told me.

"I can't; I'm freaking out. This just hit me out of the blue, guys!" I flopped back down onto my seat.

"That's awesome for you and Ally. I'm happy for you guys," Dez grinned.

"She hasn't said yes yet," I pointed out. "And I haven't even asked her. I don't even know if I should do it."

"Austin, come on. You know she's going to say yes. This is Ally we're talking about; she _loves_ you!" he said.

"Exactly, Dez, this is Ally we're talking about. _Allyson Dawson_. I mean, I know she loves me and everything, but you know what she's like. She'd rather get her life in order before she even thinks about marriage, and now that we've got Maci, she'll want to wait until she's older." I sighed. "Plus, she's got that music video to worry about. Adding a wedding will push her over the edge and she'll end up in the hospital."

"Well, think of the pros and cons," Jace started.

"Oh god, you sound like Ally," I said.

"I love pros and cons lists."

"Now you sound _exactly_ like Ally!"

"Just work with me here. The pros." He started ticking things off on his fingers. "You get Ally as your wife. She's all yours. You, Ally, and Maci will be one big happy family. Getting married could help now that you have a baby."

"Not really seeing the cons here," Dez spoke up.

Jace continued. "The main con: you're really young. Marriage is a big deal; you guys just turned 21. I'm not saying you guys won't work out in the end, but marriage changes people, especially young people, and I'd rather you guys have a great and healthy relationship for a long time than have a strained one early on."

Mother of god, that one con pretty much counts for twenty cons versus the four pros. Well, that makes me feel awesome, sarcasm completely intended.

"This is harder than I thought it was going to be," I groaned, putting my head in my hands.

"If I had to make the decision, I'd say go for it," Dez said. "It's obvious you and Ally are meant to be together forever, and if anything, I think marriage would strengthen your bond with each other."

Jace and I stared at him. "That was one of the deepest things you have ever said in your life," I told him.

Dez patted himself on the shoulder. "Yes, I do have a soft spot, if I do say so myself."

"Well, I've got one guy that says I should do it, one that thinks it might not be such a good idea, and another who doesn't even know." I nodded. "Alright. I'm basically right where I started."

We were quiet for a minute before Jace quietly said, "So, what are you going to do?"

"I have no idea," I sighed. "Part of me thinks I should really go for it, but the other part is still unsure."

"That's two against one!" Dez exclaimed.

"Huh?" Jace asked.

"I think Austin should propose and part of him thinks he should too, but you think they should wait, so that's two against one. It's settled, Austin proposes!"

"Part of him thinks he should wait, so it's actually a tie," Jace corrected.

"Awe, ham cakes! I thought I made a smarticle point there," Dez pouted.

"Ham c-?" Jace started, but I cut him off.

"Dude, leave it." I stared at the wall. "This is so hard."

"I know, man," Jace said sympathetically. "But if it helps, either way, you and Ally are meant to be. Marriage or not."

I gave a small smile. "Thanks."

While the three of us sat in silence, thinking, I ran my hands down my face. This was probably the hardest decision I've ever had to make in my entire life. And everyone knows how bad I am at making decisions.

"Who wants to make hats out of cheese?" Dez spoke.

"Dez!"

* * *

**A/N: :) How was it? I know there was no Ally or Maci in it, but I think it's good to show Austin's side of things once in a while. Some of you are probably freaking out after this chapter. In a good way, I hope :) Update will be as soon as I can.**

**Review! ... While I patiently wait for G&G to premiere next weekend... :( So mad some of you have already seen it haha, I'm not a patient person. and I live in Canada, so I just watch the episodes on the computer after they premiere in the US :p**

**Joelle xx **

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Oh yeah, who saw R5 on TV for that skating show!? I didn't...I wish I could have though haha, let me know how it was! I love talking to you guys! :)**


	5. Austin, Grab Her!

**A/N: Update time! Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, glad so many of you liked it! :)**

**Shoutout to LauraRaura :) Thanks for all of your awesome reviews, every single one of them makes me smile like an idiot! :) I would PM you, but I don't think you have the setting on haha. But thank you so much for reading my stories, you're awesome! Glad your friend Ashlynn is enjoying my stories as well, both of you are amazing! And your boyfriend review made me laugh so hard :D Too funny! And please, you can call me Joelle :)**

**Shoutout to Nada :) Love you girl, forever! :D**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A. Enjoy! :)**

**P.S: I have changed my penname! It is the same, but I took the periods out because it wouldn't show up on anything if I had them in haha. So it's now: R5RossLynch29**

**Not a big change! :)**

* * *

Ally POV

"Sooner or later, you'll have to do it. I'd go with sooner. Take it and no one gets hurt."

"I can't."

"C'mon, it's not going to kill you."

"It might."

"Austin, you're being ridiculous, just take it!"

"But it's icky, Ally," he whined from the couch. I was in the process of trying to give my sick, dork of a boyfriend cough syrup, but I wasn't succeeding.

"If you don't take it, you're not going to get better, and you'll end up getting me and Maci sick. A sick baby is not a good thing."

"I'm fine," Austin said before coughing.

I rolled my eyes. "You're not fine. Open up."

He relented and grudgingly opened his mouth so I could give him the syrup. His face immediately scrunched up. "That's disgusting!"

"I know, but it'll make you feel better." I went to put the medicine away before coming back and laying a blanket over him. "You should rest."

Austin sighed. "Fine, but if the studio calls, wake me up."

"I'll take care of it if they do. I'll make you soup for when you get up," I replied.

Austin's eyes were already closed when I left the living room to go to the kitchen. My mom had been looking after Maci at my parents' place while I was here taking care of Austin, and it had helped me out a lot.

While I boiled the water for the soup, my phone rang. I jumped and quickly answered it so it wouldn't wake up Austin.

"Hello?"

"Hey Ally," Leah said from the other end.

"Oh, hey Leah, how's it going?"

"Pretty good. I was just calling to see if you wanted me to pick Maci up from your mom and dad's. I know you were going to get her later on, but you probably don't want to leave Austin alone either. Plus, your parents live two minutes from my school; I can get Mace on my way home."

"You know what? That would be great, Leah," I sighed with relief. "Are you sure you don't mind?"

"Of course not, I love that little girl. I'll see you in an hour or so."

"Alright, see you." I hung up and poured the soup in the now boiling water.

I flipped through a magazine while I waited. When it was done, I poured it in a thermos to keep it warm. I sighed tiredly and threw my hair up in a bun.

Austin had been sick for a few days now. It had just hit him out of the blue. First he had the flu, so two days ago I was up all night with him. Now he had a cold so he was coughing and complaining 24/7. He's barely slept at all.

I kept myself busy by cleaning, and before I knew it, Leah's car was pulling into the driveway. I was putting everything away when she came through the door holding Maci in one arm, Maci's bag in the other.

"Hey," she greeted.

"Hello," I smiled. "And hello to you, too," I added as I took Maci and her bag from Leah. "Thanks for bringing her home, I really appreciate it."

"No problem at all," Leah said.

"Do you want to stay for tea? I was just about to have some," I told her.

"Oh, I don't want to intrude with Austin being sick," she started, but I cut her off.

"It's fine, he's sleeping anyways. Come on, I want to hear about your classes and the hot gossip." I mock pouted. "I miss high school drama."

Leah laughed. "Well, okay. I'll just call my parents and let them know." She went into the hallway.

I kissed Maci's forehead and set her down on the ground while I made the tea. Leah came back a few minutes later.

"They're cool with it," she said.

"I like your outfit," I smiled. I really liked Leah. Actually, I loved Quinn's whole family. They were like family to me and Austin.

"Thanks!" She was wearing a neon green t-shirt that made her green eyes pop with a black vest, jean shorts, and black biker boots. Her brown hair was pulled back into a long curly ponytail. Same style as her sister, in general, although Quinn had way more piercings. Leah also had her nose pierced like Quinn.

Leah picked Maci up and sat her on her lap while I brought the tea to the table. "So how's school going?"

"It's alright," Leah said. "I'm not really a big fan of most of my teachers, but the classes are okay. Math is my favourite."

"Mine too!" I said. "Well, it was. I guess I'm not in school anymore."

"At least I've got my softball," she laughed.

"I didn't know you played softball."

"Yeah, I've been playing my whole life, almost. I'm hoping to get a scholarship."

"That'd be awesome," I agreed.

Leah hesitated. "There is one little problem I'm having."

"Guy troubles?" I guessed.

"Is it that obvious?"

"No, I just guessed," I admitted. "Although I kind of figured. What's up?"

"So, I like this guy. His name is Bryce, and he's in three of my classes. Sometimes I think he likes me too, but my friend Jenna likes him a lot, and when Jenna sets her sights on a guy, you're better off not even looking at him. Technically, she liked him first, but if he likes me too, which I think he does, shouldn't I just go for it? I mean, it's not my fault he likes me and not Jenna! But she might hate me after, and our friendship will be shot to hell, and I just don't know what I should do!" She took a deep breath at the end of her rant.

"Wow," I said after she was done.

"Yeah, I know. My love life is messed up."

"Can I be honest with you?"

"Please." She nodded.

"Well, I wasn't great in the guy department when I was in high school. Ask anybody, and I mean anybody. But based on past experience and seeing other people go through it, I'd say talk to Jenna about it first. Just flat out tell her, but don't let a guy come in between your friendship. Ask yourself what's more important: a guy, or your friend."

"Sound reasonable. But what if she gets mad at me and doesn't want to be friends anymore?" Maci reached out and grabbed Leah's finger.

"If she's really your friend, she'll get over it and be happy for you." I laughed lightly. "I know it's not the best advice."

"It's the best advice I've gotten. Quinn just told me to go for it and to not care what Jenna thinks. Thanks Ally," Leah smiled.

"No problem."

Austin sleepily shuffled into the kitchen, his hair everywhere, in sweats, and shirtless, like usual. Leah blushed, and I giggled.

"Sorry, I can't help it," she whispered with a smile.

He caught sight of us. "Hey Als, hey Leah," he said huskily. I swear, boys with sleepy voices is the sexiest shit ever.

Leah waved. "How're you feeling?" I asked.

"Better than before."

I stood up and walked to the stove to pour him the soup. "Here, eat this."

"Thanks," he smiled lightly. He really did look like hell, for lack of a better word.

He sat down at the table and reached out to stroke Maci's cheek. "Hey, sweetie. I would kiss you, but I don't want you sick."

She clapped her hands and bent her head back to look at Leah, who laughed. Maci shrieked in response.

Austin whistled before breaking down into a coughing fit. "What'd I say about whistling for the dog while you're sick?" I scolded, hands on my hips.

"Not to do it," my boyfriend muttered after his coughing subsided.

"Exactly."

Pancakes trotted into the room and set her head in Austin's lap. He scratched her ears. "Hey girl."

Leah checked her watch. "I'd better get going. Mom's expecting me back to watch Sheridan." She set Maci down and stood up. "Thanks for the tea and talk, Ally."

"Anytime," I smiled. "Come over whenever."

"Will do," she grinned before grabbing her keys. "See you guys later. Bye Mace!"

"See you, Leah," I said. "Thanks again!"

"Later," Austin croaked. She waved and headed into the hallway. The front door opened and closer a moment later.

"That was nice of her to bring Maci back," Austin commented.

"Yeah, it was." I checked my watch. "Awesome, it's five. My Little Pony is on, it'll keep her occupied." I scooped Maci up and brought her to the living room and turned on the TV to the right channel.

Austin sauntered in a few minutes later. "I'll watch her; I'll be on the couch anyways."

"Perfect, I'm going for a shower then." I hurried upstairs.

* * *

Austin POV

"I'm sorry, Mace, but I have no idea how you watch this stuff," I said as I watched the TV screen. She was sitting beside me on the ground in her little chair while I was lying on the couch.

She was in a trance like she always was when she watched My Little Pony. One time, I tried turning the channel to the basketball game because I figured, you know, she's only one so she won't even care. Nope; she screamed at me until I changed it back.

I groaned and grabbed the thermos of soup, pouring myself more. "Another twenty minutes of this?"

Maci threw her hands down and screamed. "Okay, okay, I'll stop talking!" I exclaimed. "Sheesh."

After a while, the story actually got interesting. I was done my soup and was all comfy. "You know, I think it's good that Rainbow Dash is helping Applejack find her missing hairbrush. It really shows teamwork and helps define their close friendship. Don't you agree, Mace?" I glanced at Maci before turning back to the TV. "Yeah, that's what-" I stopped as I did a double take.

Maci was standing up. On her own.

* * *

Ally POV

"Ally!"

"What?" I yelled. What could he possibly want while I'm in the shower? I heard coughing a few seconds later and rolled my eyes. I told him to quit yelling and whistling, but no. He never listens.

"Maci's about to walk, get your ass down here!"

Mother of god, seriously?

"What! Now?" I turned the shower off and jumped out, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around myself.

"Yes! Hurry up!"

I threw the door open and ran down the hall. I slipped around the corner. "Oh shit!" I yelped, grabbing the railing for support. "Austin, stall her!"

"How am I supposed to do that?"

"I don't know, just do it!"

"Um, don't move, Maci, wait for your mommy," I heard him saying. I pounded down the stairs into the living room.

Austin was sitting a few feet in front of Maci, who was standing up staring at him. "Come on, Maci, you can do it!"

"Go to daddy, Mace!" I hurried and stood behind her.

Maci smiled. And then fell down on her butt again.

I groaned. "Damn it."

"Wait, she's getting up again," Austin said. Sure enough, the little trooper was pushing herself up. "Maci, come here," Austin scooted a bit closer with his arms out.

She tentatively took a step forward and teetered a bit. I had my hands by her sides, but she kept her balance and took another step towards Austin.

"Oh my god, Austin! She's walking!" I said happily as she took a few more steps, me following behind.

He beamed. "A few more Mace, you're almost there!"

Maci giggled and took the last few steps into Austin's arms. "She did it!" I clapped happily and bent to kiss her head.

"Good job Maci," Austin grinned. "Who would've thought My Little Pony would encourage that?"

"Who cares? She walked!"

Austin and I switched places and Maci walked back to me while Austin walked close behind her. "She can really walk," I laughed. "I'm so proud of you, missy."

First steps? Check!

* * *

Ally POV 

"Where'd she go?" I panted as Austin and I looked around the room.

"She was just running past here!" He exclaimed.

It had been three weeks since Maci had taken her first steps, and now she was running all over the house. Austin put gates and locks on the stairs and every other open space in the house so she wouldn't get where she wasn't supposed to. We had to chase her everywhere, and had spent the last fifteen minutes doing just that.

Suddenly, Maci ran past the kitchen door, giggling madly. "There! Austin, grab her!"

We hurried after her, and Austin managed to catch her. "And just where do you think you're going?" He peppered her with kisses, making her shriek.

I doubled over. "Why is it so hard to catch a baby? Seriously!"

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Next update will be as soon as possible. Thankfully my exams are OVER :D Feels so good haha. Who's excited for Girlfriends & Girlfriends? I know I am! :) **

**Oh, and that spoiler thing needs to stop, guys. I've noticed on the A&A wiki that it seems like that's the main topic right now. Tell everyone not to post spoilers for the episodes, Disney is so serious when they say they might cancel the show. So please, no spoilers. Be patient! We want a season 3! :)**

**Thanks for reading, I love you all! :D Review!**

**AND, on another note, R5 is filming a music video for LOUD today! :D Probably as I type this, haha. I'm so excited for the album to be released, who's with me? :)**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Follow me on Instagram too! joelle_mcmillan**


	6. I Can't Do This

**A/N: Chapter 6! Sorry I took a while to update guys, second semester has started and I'm swamped with work already. It sucks! So I haven't had much time to write, unfortunately :( But I managed to update nonetheless because you guys are just too amazing for me to make you guys wait too long! :)**

**Enjoy! Oh, and the bold print is what Ally writes in her songbook, just clearing things up.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A, or pieces of the songs "Are You Happy Now?" and "Happy Never After" by Megan & Liz. Awesome songs, go check them out on Youtube! :)**

* * *

Ally POV

"Alright, Maci, you play nicely with Pancakes while I work on this song," I told my daughter as I set her down on her play mat beside Pancakes. Maci grabbed her monkey, which was her way of saying _'Leave me alone so I can play.'_

Sitting down at the piano, I opened my songbook. "Okay, here we go. First verse is somewhat done, and..." I flipped through the rest of the pages. "And apparently that's all I have. I thought I wrote more."

"Talking to yourself?" Austin asked as he strolled into the den, shoving chips into his mouth.

"As a matter of fact, yes, I am talking to myself." I stared at him. "That's disgusting."

"What?" He said through a mouthful of food.

I looked at him pointedly and he swallowed with a blush. "Oh, that. Sorry." He flopped down on the ground beside Maci and Pancakes. "I was coming to see if they wanted to play outside."

"You're gonna watch the two of them? Outside? By yourself?"

Austin rolled his eyes. "It's not like I'm going to lose one of them."

"Pancakes ran off twice last week because you weren't paying attention, and Maci almost fell off the swing a few days ago!" I exclaimed.

"Hey, I caught her in time!"

"That's beside the point, Austin. The point is that you can't watch the two of them by yourself. It's like monitoring hummingbirds; they're everywhere at once!"

Austin stood up. "Thanks for the confidence boost, Als," he said sarcastically. "But I think I'll manage." He bent to help Maci up and took her hand. "C'mon Pancakes!"

Pancakes jumped up and the three of them walked out of the den. I yelled after my boyfriend. "If I hear crying, you are a dead man, Austin Moon!"

"You won't!" He yelled back. I heard the door open and close a few minutes later.

My phone rang. "Hello?"

"Hey girl," Trish said from the other line.

"Hey, what's up?"

"I need to ask you a huge favour."

"I am not shipping Dez off to Zimbabwe."

"I wasn't going to say that," Trish replied.

"I'm not shipping him off to Turkey either," I told her.

"Damn."

"Seriously, Trish?"

"I'm kidding. But in all seriousness, I do need a favour. The power went out at my place so my oven isn't working, and I was supposed to bake a cake for my mom and dad's anniversary."

"Let me guess. You need me to make it here and you'll pick it up on your way to your parent's."

"You see? This is why you're my best friend!" she said happily.

I sighed. "You're lucky you are, or I wouldn't be doing it. When do you need it by?"

"I'll stop by to pick it up at six."

I glanced at the clock. It was 4:30 now. "Alright, fine."

"I would do it, Ally, but your oven is so complex."

"No, you wouldn't."

"Yeah, I know, it didn't sound right when I said it. You know how I feel about anything that involves work."

"Unfortunately I do. I'll see you later."

"Thanks Ally, I owe you big time!"

"Yeah you do." I hung up and set my phone down. "Guess the song will have to wait until later." I stood up and stretched before heading to the kitchen to get the baking ingredients ready.

While I was mixing the batter, I tried to think of more lyrics for the song, but it was hard to think with the whir of the mixer blades, so I gave up on that.

I put the cake in the oven for it to bake, and Maci ran into the kitchen, followed by Austin and Pancakes. Maci ran at my legs and wrapped her arms around them.

"Hey sweetie," I laughed as I picked her up. She giggled.

"They're both very much alive," Austin told me as he gave Pancakes water.

"I see that."

Austin looked at me pointedly until I relented. "Okay, I'm sorry I doubted you. I won't do it again."

He grinned in satisfaction. "Thank you." He glanced at the clock. "Want to order takeout?"

"Sure."

"Pizza okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine." I set Maci down. "I think there are coupons on the fridge."

Austin walked over and took them off from their place under a magnet. "I'll go pick it up now."

He grabbed his jacket before heading out to the hallway. I scooped his keys up from the counter and held them out just as Austin walked back into the kitchen.

"There's no way I could it without you," Austin said sheepishly as he took his keys.

"Uh huh," I giggled. He grinned and gave me a quick kiss before leaving the room. The door opened and closed a moment later.

"Maci, no, you don't put that in your mouth," I scolded as I walked over to her and grabbed the object she was sucking on. I gasped. "Is this my lipstick? How on earth did you get this?"

In response, she giggled madly and clapped her hands before going to sit with Pancakes.

"I'm watching you, Mace," I told her.

When the cake was done baking, I took it out and let it cool before icing it and decorating it quickly. The doorbell rang and I grabbed the cake before hurrying to answer it. It was Trish.

"Here," I said as I handed the cake over.

"You're a lifesaver, Ally," she sighed with relief. "Seriously, thank you so much."

"You're welcome." I paused. "That'll be forty bucks."

"What?" Trish shrieked.

"I'm kidding," I laughed. "But I've got to go, Maci's in the other room."

"Same. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Sounds good. See you," I said as she hurried down the steps.

"Thank again!" She called over her shoulder.

I shut the door and went back to the kitchen to find Maci asleep on Pancakes, who was also asleep.

"Seriously? How does that even happen?" I wondered quietly. I walked over to the two of them and gently picked Maci up.

I brought her upstairs and tucked her in, sticking her monkey beside her. I smiled softly down at her and turned on her mobile before leaving her room.

Austin was in the kitchen opening the pizza when I came back down.

He looked up as I walked in. "Where's Mace?"

"She fell asleep on the dog, so I took her to bed," I explained as I slid onto a stool at the counter.

He handed me a piece of pizza. Pepperoni and mushrooms, my favourite. I smiled. "Thanks."

Austin grinned. "So how's the song coming for the campaign?"

"Ugh, I've barely got it started. I had to make a cake for Trish because the power went out at her place."

"Why wouldn't she just get Dez to do it? I mean, he may be abnormal, but he sure can cook," Austin said.

"That's true," I agreed. "Eh, whatever, I'll just work on the song later tonight."

"You sure you want to do that? Don't you have to work tomorrow morning?"

"Yes, I'll go to bed at a decent time, don't worry," I assured him.

"Alright, if you say so." Austin sighed happily. "God, I love this pizza!"

I starting laughing and he chuckled. "What's so funny?"

"You have pizza sauce on your nose," I told him through my laughing.

"What? Where?"

I reached forward and smeared sauce on his nose. "Right there."

"Oh, you're funny," he said as I burst out laughing again.

"Oh, don't be mad, Rudolph," I grinned.

"Oh, that's it," Austin started as I shrieked and jumped up, running behind the table. "You can run, but you can't hide!"

"You'll have to catch me first," I shot back grinning. Austin went to move around the table, but I was quick and shot past him and into the living room.

"Austin, go away!" I laughed as I stopped running and turned around. He tried to grab me, and I was trying my best to block his hands. I was laughing too hard, though, and he snagged me around the waist and smeared sauce on my nose.

"Hey! Don't boop my nose!"

"Then don't boop mine!" He replied.

We stared at each other before bursting out laughing. "Dude, you look ridiculous," I giggled.

"I don't know. I think I kinda rock this look," Austin said seriously, which only made me laugh harder.

I slipped my hands around his neck. "I love you. You know that, right?"

He smiled. "I do. And I love you, too."

He bent to kiss me and when we pulled away, I reached up and licked the sauce off his nose. "Did you just lick my nose?" He exclaimed.

"Yep!"

He bent down and licked mine. "There, now we're even."

I shoved his shoulder playfully and we went back to the kitchen. Austin smacked my ass on the way there and I shrieked. "Austin Monica Moon!"

"Yes?" He asked innocently.

I just rolled my eyes and cleaned up the pizza. We watched a movie after we were done and it was nine by the time we finished it.

Austin yawned. "I'm exhausted. I'm heading up to bed."

"I'll be up in a bit. I'm going to work on the song," I told him as we stood up.

"Ally, you need to sleep. You've got an early shift at work tomorrow."

"But I need to work on the song!"

"You have lots of time to work on it," my boyfriend said gently. "Come on, you'll regret it in the morning when you're biting my head off."

I sighed and let him drag me up the stairs. "Fine, I'll do it tomorrow sometime."

I changed into a green tank top and black shorts before crawling into bed. Austin threw on his grey sweats and slipped in beside me.

I snuggled up into his bare chest. "Goodnight."

"Night," he muttered.

* * *

Ally POV

I shot up in bed from my nightmare, sweating. "Jesus, worst dream ever," I breathed quietly. I glanced over at Austin and saw that he was still fast asleep.

I grabbed my glasses from the bedside table before slowly getting out of bed. Austin cringed at the loss of my body, but he turned over and continued to snore. I went to the bathroom and splashed water on my face before throwing my hair up into a messy bun and slipping my glasses on. Yes, I had black-rimmed reading glasses. But they made me look hot, so who cares?

I went downstairs and into the den where the piano was. I grabbed my songbook and looked at the clock. It was after three in the morning.

"Great," I told myself. "Just great."

Sitting down at the piano, I got back to work on the song. _"She's not like other girls, she could've conquered the world. Until you brought her down,"_ I sang as I tried to match the melody. _"Are you happy now?"_

After an hour of working, I had four things: one garbage can overloaded with balls of crumpled paper, five broken pencils, a very messed up first verse, and an extremely frustrated Ally.

**'I thought we'd always be happy.' **Looking over what I'd written, I threw my pencil down and crumbled the paper, chucking it in the garbage. It just rolled off the pile onto the floor. "That doesn't work. Ugh, this is harder than I thought," I told myself. Try again.

**'Guess I was wrong; guess you'll always be my happy never after.' **

I growled in frustration and crumbled those lyrics up as well before whipping the ball of paper at the wall. "That's not a bullying song. That sounds like someone's in what I like to call, a relationshit!"

I was exhausted, frustrated, and overwhelmed with so many things that I did the one thing I hated doing. I threw my head down on the piano and broke down into tears. _Stop it, Ally, you're crying over nothing_, my head was telling me, but I couldn't stop.

The main light flicked on and I whipped around to find Austin standing in the doorway. "Ally? What the hell are you doing down here? It's after four," he asked sleepily. He didn't look very happy.

"How'd you know where I was?" I sniffed.

"I woke up to use the washroom and you were gone. Plus, I heard the piano and you swearing like a sailor down here. Now why are you down here?"

"I had a bad dream and couldn't sleep, so I came to work on the song," I said thickly, wiping my eyes.

"Are you crying?" He asked me, coming into the room.

"Yes! I am crying!" I exclaimed. "Is it so hard to believe that a girl can cry once in a while?!"

He softened and sat beside me at the piano, pulling my glasses off gently and wiping underneath my eyes. "Wanna tell me what's up?"

"I can't get this song right, and I've been working for over an hour! I don't even have the first verse completely finished!" I told him before bursting into tears again. "I can't do this, Austin, it's too much."

"Hey, hey," he said softly as he rubbed my back. "Yes you can, Als. I know you can."

"No, I can't. I'm not cut out for this."

"Ally, it's just a song. You've written tons for me."

"Yes, but I'm not just talking about the song! Going to meetings for the campaign has me constantly busy, and I've got Maci to take care of, and to top it all off, I'm no longer on maternity leave at work, which means I'm there at least four times a week! It's a lot for me to handle right now, and I'm just really stressed out!"

"Okay, first of all, it's past four in the morning. You're exhausted and can't think straight. Second of all, you're over thinking the song. Just relax and you'll be fine, you always are. Third, you've always got me to help with Maci and things."

"You're gone a lot for your own job!"

"But I'm not gone _all_ the time. Our parents are always more than willing to help us out with Mace, and so is Quinn's family," Austin told me. "Ally, you're not alone. Besides, Maci is a good little girl, she hardly ever gets fussy. Unlike somebody I know."

I elbowed him and he laughed. I even cracked a smile. "There's a smile," Austin grinned.

I paused. "Were you seriously trying to give me song writing advice? You?" I sniffed.

"Hey, I'm trying to help," he told me. "Cut me some slack, normal people aren't up at this time."

I wiped my eyes. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine." He wrapped his arm around me and gave me a side hug. "You're an amazing songwriter, Ally. Don't you ever forget that. And you're an amazing mom. From what I see, you're doing an awesome job." He smiled down at me. "I'm so proud of you."

I gave him a small smile. "I'll never get tired of hearing that."

"Well good, because I'll be saying it all the time." Austin smoothed my hair and kissed my head. He always knew how to cheer me up, and knew what to say. "Let's go back to bed, alright? I'm exhausted and I'm sure you are too."

I nodded. "Yeah."

He stood up and held his hands out, hauling me up. "Please don't come down here this early again."

"Awe, you're so sweet, making sure I get enough sleep," I smiled. "Thanks for looking out for me."

"Oh, I'm looking out for me," Austin said. "Do you know how grouchy you get when you hardly get sleep? It's like somebody lit a fuse on a psycho bomb."

I clenched my jaw and raised my eyebrow. "I can start that grouchiness early, mister."

Austin's eyes widened and he hurried up the stairs.

"Exactly!" I called after him, but I smiled nonetheless. I loved that guy.

* * *

**A/N: Threw in some Auslly there for you guys :) Hope you enjoyed it! Review! :)**

**Oh, who is excited for Campers & Complications? Who has seen the promo!? Like omg, I'm freaking out! I've watched it over fifteen times :) Yeah, obsessed much, Joelle? Totally, and I am NOT ashamed in any way :) I don't care that I'm fifteen, going on sixteen haha**

**Anybody watch the show Melissa & Joey on ABC? It's amazing! :) and so funny, I die everytime I watch it haha. I was just thinking about it when I woke up on Sunday morning, and it just hit me to try watching the first episode on Youtube, and I spent ALL day Sunday watching it. I'm up to episode 19 of Season 1! I've still got alot to go haha. So that's my little story of the chapter! :) ****Anybody have anything interesting that's happened to them lately? I love hearing about other people's lives, no matter what it is haha. Yes, I'm creepy. Kinda :p**

**Love you all!**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Instagram? joelle_mcmillan**

**P.S: I WANT LOUD TO COME OUT NOW! I LOVE THE SONG "LOUD!" IT'S ROSSOME! :D :D :D K, I'm done now :)**


	7. Lights, Camera- Wait, What?

**A/N: Update time! Thanks for the reviews on the previous chapter, you guys rock! :D**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A, or the concept of the video for "Are You Happy Now?" by Megan & Liz. Or Ian Somerhalder. God, I wish I owned him. I love him :) Anyone watch The Vampire Diaries? :) He's gorgeous!**

**Enjoy, sorry for mistakes!**

* * *

Ally POV

"Als," I faintly heard from somewhere above.

"Mmm, Ian Somerhalder?" I giggled dreamily. "You're supposed to be in my favourite TV show playing a smoking hot vampire, not in my bedroom."

"Ally."

"You should go back in the TV, although I don't entirely appose to you being here."

"That makes me feel awesome." I groaned and opened my eyes to find Austin standing over me.

"Well, you're not Ian Somerhalder," I commented.

"Sorry to disappoint you," Austin said sarcastically.

I blushed. "I didn't mean it like that."

Austin smirked. "What kind of dreams were you having?"

"Private dreams!" I replied.

"Am I smoking hot like your fantasy, vampire guy on the TV?"

"You're hotter than hell. And a sex god. Satisfied?"

"Very, yes."

"Good. Just being honest." I lied back down and buried myself under the blankets, closing my eyes. "Now let me go back to bed."

"Sorry, babe, no can do." I felt his hand on my shoulder and he lightly shook me. "It's the day you shoot your music video. You need to get up now."

"Ugh," I mumbled. I completely forgot about that. I reluctantly sat up, rubbing my eyes. "What time is it?"

"Six."

"_Six?_" I sighed tiredly. "It's too early for a Saturday."

"I know, but I made you breakfast already. It's waiting for you downstairs."

I brightened. "Pickles included?"

Austin chuckled. "Yes, pickles included." He started to walk towards the door.

"What, no good morning kiss?" I asked.

"Not until you brush your teeth!" He called over his shoulder as he walked out the door.

I sighed and lied back down.

"Allyson Dawson, get up!"

"Okay, I'm up!" I exclaimed. I grabbed my glasses and slid them on before throwing my hair in a bun and sliding out of bed.

"Maci's still asleep," Austin told me when I got to the kitchen.

"No kidding, it's six in the morning. We'll just get her when we have to go. Damn it, I wish we didn't have to take her with us." Unfortunately, we were out of luck for sitters for the day. My parents were out of town for the weekend, Austin's parents were busy at their store for a big weekend sale they were having, Quinn's family was gone on holidays, and Trish and Dez would be coming with us to the shoot.

"Trish, Dez, and I will watch her, don't worry about it," Austin assured me. Pancakes came and greeted me, and we sat down at the table.

"Oh, thanks for this," I sighed happily. "I love not cooking."

"No problem, but we've got," Austin checked his watch. "Less than two hours to get to the shoot."

"Ugh, how do you do this so much?" I groaned as I shovelled bacon and eggs into my mouth. "I don't even have time to savour this bacon!"

He shrugged. "I'm used to it. And I'll cook you bacon again tomorrow."

"Deal." When I finished breakfast, I cleared my spot and put the dishes in the dishwasher. "I'm going to shower and change."

"Oh, don't change into anything major. They'll do your hair, makeup, and wardrobe when we get there," Austin said.

"Right. Jeez, this is weird. For once it's me filming something and you're like my agent," I smiled. "It's always the other way around."

Austin chuckled. "Just go get ready please."

"Okay, okay, I'm going." I hurried upstairs and to the bathroom where I took a quick shower and changed into black yoga shorts and a blue t-shirt. I plaited my hair down my back before checking on Maci. She was still asleep, so I slipped on flip flops and hurried downstairs.

"I'll go change and bring Maci down with me, then we've really gotta go. The shoot is on the other side of Miami and we're going to hit the early morning traffic," Austin told me. He gave me a big, long kiss.

"Wow," I breathed when we broke apart. "I'm no longer thinking about a certain vampire."

"Good, those were my intentions," Austin grinned before rushing past me towards the stairs. "By the way, you look nice!"

I grabbed the carton of orange juice and poured myself a glass before downing it. I scrunched up my face. "Nu uh, should not have done that. Jeez, that's _disgusting_ with toothpaste!"

I heated a bottle for Maci, and Austin came down half an hour later dressed in black jeans and a purple t-shirt with a black leather jacket, topped with blue hightops. He had Maci in his arms, who was dressed in a simple jeans-and-pink-t-shirt outfit.

"She is _not_ happy," Austin warned me. He was right. She was twisting in his arms and whimpering.

"Here, I'll give her a bottle on the way." He handed her to me and we grabbed her bag and our things before hurrying out the door. "Are Trish and Dez meeting us there?"

Austin nodded as I strapped Maci in her car seat in the back seat of the SUV. "It's easier for them."

"Yeah, that's fine." I finished strapping Maci in. "I'm sorry, sweetie, I know you're tired." I gave her the bottle and she somewhat calmed down.

I got in the front with Austin and we peeled it out of the driveway. "Take Keaston, there isn't lots of traffic on that road around this time," I told him.

I glanced behind me at Maci while Austin switched lanes. She stared at me before looking away and continuing to suck on her bottle.

"She's pissed," I announced when I faced the front again.

"Well, I would be too if my parents woke me up this early," Austin said.

"Have fun watching her all day."

"Trish and Dez get to deal with her, too, so it makes me feel a little bit better about the situation I'm about to be forcedly shoved into."

I rolled my eyes and turned the radio on quietly. It usually calmed Maci down and put her back to sleep; it would make looking after her easier for the three "sitters" while I was filming.

"I'll try the radio." When I leaned back into my seat, I felt a thud behind me. "Ow!" I turned around. "Did you just kick my seat, Maci?"

She gave me the creepiest little laugh before going back to sucking on her bottle.

"She just kicked my seat," I exclaimed.

"She's mad!" Austin said.

"Yeah, but she's never kicked my seat before. That was a hard kick, too."

He shrugged. "She's getting older, I guess."

We rode in silence for a bit with just the radio on before Maci fell back asleep. "Yes," I sighed. Austin gave me a lopsided grin.

"You nervous?" he asked me.

I shrugged. "A little."

He reached across and squeezed my knee. "You'll be great."

I laughed lightly. "I hope so."

"I know so," Austin smiled.

When we arrived at the studio, we parked behind the building and piled out. I gently unstrapped Maci and switched her into her carrier. Thankfully, she stayed asleep.

Austin took the carrier while I took everything else out. Trish and Dez pulled up beside us.

"Hey," they greeted as they got out.

"Hey. Trish, can you grab my bag for me?" I shut the back of the vehicle and we all walked towards the stage door.

"Excited?" Trish smiled.

"I'm pretty excited," I replied.

"It feels weird not filming. Maybe I'll help them," Dez said.

"No way, dude. You're helping babysit Little Miss Cranky," Austin said. "She wasn't too happy when I woke her up this morning. She threw her monkey at me!"

"You never told me that," I said.

"If she heard me say it when she was awake, she would've done it again. I'm telling you, Maci is smarter than a monkey. Ha, that's ironic."

I shook my head as we entered the building. The head of the Make It Right foundation, Elle Meadows, came over to us. "Hello kids!"

We all greeted her and she smiled at me. "Ready, my dear?"

I nodded. "As ready as I'll ever be."

"Good," she laughed. "Now come with me, we've got to get you ready."

I turned to the other three. "I'll see you guys in a bit." I leaned up and kissed Austin. "Don't lose her," I warned. "Any of you," I added, looking at Trish and Dez. "Or I will personally chop off your heads."

"We won't," they said.

"Good luck, Als," Austin smiled.

"Thanks," I smiled back. I waved and hurried after Elle down a hallway. She stopped at a door labelled 'Hair and Makeup' and opened it.

"The stylists are ready for you," she told me. "Thanks again for doing this, Ally. We're very grateful you're taking the time, especially with your already busy life."

"It's no problem, I'm happy to do it," I assured her before slipping into the room.

There were two ladies who ushered me to the chair. "I'm Kendra," the blonde said. "And this is Wendy." The raven haired lady smiled.

"I'm Ally. Do your worst," I joked.

They laughed. "We plan too. Let's get started, shall we?"

* * *

Ally POV

"You look fabulous, darling!" Kendra exclaimed as she and Wendy stepped back to admire their handiwork. They pulled me to a floor length mirror.

I was wearing midnight blue strapless dress that went to my knees and black ankle boots. My hair was curled around my shoulders and pinned back on one side, and my makeup was dark and smokey.

"Wow," I said in awe. "It doesn't even look like me."

"You look beautiful, honey," Wendy said. "But we better get you to the set."

They ushered me out the door and down the hall to where the set was. The set looked like a school hallway, and crew was rushing around everywhere, the extras already in place.

Austin, Trish, and Dez were sitting off to the side by the food table, pigging out on the food. Well, Austin and Dez were; Trish was watching Maci. Thank god for somebody.

A lady hurried up to me and held out her hand. "I'm Callie, the director."

I shook her hand. "Ally."

She smiled. She looked nice enough. "Now, you're going to be playing two different people; one is your stereotypical snobby popular girl, and the other is, for lack of a better word, a loser. The popular girl is going to be bullying the other girl. Got it?"

I nodded slowly. "I think so." I looked down at my outfit. "I'm guessing I'm in popular mode right now."

"Right. Come on, let's get you in place." She took me onto the set by the lockers and a group of people who I assumed would be my popular group of friends, from the way they were dressed. "We'll use one of the extras for you to bully while we film, and when you're the uncool girl, we'll use an extra to bully you. When we edit everything, we'll replace the extra's places with your characters respectively," Callie explained. "For this scene, you're hanging around with your friends, having a good time when your victim walks in your direction down the hall. When she comes close, act snobby and stick your leg out to trip her."

I took a deep breath. "Okay." A stage hand handed me a purse.

"You'll be great, honey, it's lots of fun. You'll see!" Callie hurried back behind the camera.

My friends waved at me and gave me a thumbs up. "And, action!"

_She stood out in the crowd, was a little too loud_  
_But that's why we love her_  
_She's not like other girls_  
_She could have conquered the world_  
_Until you broke her down_

_Are you happy now_  
_That she's on the ground?_  
_And do you realize the words you say make bruises that don't fade away_  
_Are you happy now_  
_That you've brought her down?_  
_And she's thinking that she won't fit in_  
_'Cause you said something's wrong with her_  
_Are you happy now?_

As we shot my scenes as the popular girl, I started to loosen up, and I was really having fun. In between takes and when they'd refix my hair and makeup, I'd joke around with the extras. I hadn't realized it had been five hours since we'd got to the studio.

When it was time for me to change into my "loser" clothes, I quickly hurried over to the gang.

"How's she doing?" I asked Austin as I took Maci from him.

"She's been good. She just got up about ten minutes ago and I fed her a bottle," he said. "You're doing awesome, Ally. You look beautiful." Trish and Dez nodded.

I smiled. "Thanks."

"Ally!" Kendra called.

"I'm coming!" I kissed Maci's head and handed her back to her dad. "Time for an outfit change. See you guys later."

Back in the makeup and wardrobe room, I was completely redone. When Kendra and Wendy were done, I really did look like a loser.

I had on black tights with a long baggy old band t-shirt, and an unbuttoned jean shirt over top. The outfit was paired with scruffy black boots, and my hair was thrown into a long messy side braid. I know I had makeup on, but it looked like I didn't.

"Again...wow," I commented.

"We try. Come on!"

When I was on set again, I was handed some books and an over-the-shoulder bag. Time to act like a loser.

* * *

Ally POV

"Alright, Ally, this scene has you hiding away in the bathroom crying after your popular self stood up on a table in a cafeteria and embarrassed you in front of the whole school. Just get mad, cry. You're frustrated and sick of dealing with her," Callie told me a few hours later.

"Oh dear," I said from my spot outside the fake bathroom door, ready to burst through in tears. "Crying?"

"Think of something really sad. I know it sucks, but I know you can do it. I'll give you a second."

I nodded and with all my willpower, tried to cry. That's something you don't try to do everyday. I thought of dead puppies, but that did nothing. I thought of starving kids in Africa, but that did nothing either.

I hated what I was about to do, but it was for the video.

I thought of every possible bad thing that could ever happen to Austin and Maci. Yep, that did it. The waterworks started to flow, and I shook my head.

"I'm ready," I said thickly.

"Wow," Callie stuttered. "You're really crying. But good, that's what we need! Alright, lights...camera...and- wait!"

I looked at her confused, but saw what Callie was looking at.

Maci had tottled onto the middle of the set, and was walking towards me.

"No, no, Maci, go back to daddy," I wiped my eyes. "Mommy's okay, I'm not actually upset." I looked up at Callie. "I am so sorry! Just a second." I scooped Maci up and hurried off the set and towards the food table, where Trish had her back turned.

"Trish!" I hissed, and she whipped around. "Where the hell are the guys?"

"Bathroom." As if on queue, Austin and Dez walked back.

"Pay better attention to Maci, she just walked onto the set!"

"I told Trish to watch her!" Austin exclaimed.

"I just turned my back for a second!" Trish defended.

"You have to pay attention to her. She thought I was really upset," I told them, pointing to my tear streaked face.

"Awe, Ally, what's wrong?" Dez asked.

"Nothing! It's for the video!" I backed up and pointed at them. "Watch. Her."

"I'm really sorry about that," I apologized when I got back. Kendra and Wendy cleaned my face and redid the makeup.

"Don't worry about it," Callie sighed. "As long as you can make those tears again."

"Trust me, I can," I muttered.

I got back into position, tears and all, and Callie yelled "Action!"

Fully aware that Austin, Trish, and Dez were watching, I burst through the bathroom door while the music played and threw my bag at the wall before storming over to the sink in tears. I thought staring at myself in the mirror and looking so disgusted with myself would work well, so I did that.

We shot the scene without any more interruptions, as well as the other scenes, and before I knew it, Callie yelled, "Cut! That's a wrap people!"

Everyone cheered and I walked off to talk to Elle about some things. After that, I went with Kendra and Wendy to get me back into my regular clothes.

"You've really got a knack for acting, Ally," they told me.

"Oh, thanks," I smiled.

I found Austin, Trish, Dez, and Maci in the hallway when I came out.

They tackled me in a hug. "You did great, Ally!"

"Thank you," I laughed as I hugged them back. Austin bent to kiss me quickly. "What time is it?"

"Seven," Trish replied. "I say we head out for supper."

"Sounds good to me, I'm starving," Austin said.

We all agreed and went out to our separate vehicles. I strapped Maci in and got in beside Austin.

"So how was it?" he asked as we pulled out.

"Awesome," I admitted.

He grinned. "You looked like you were having fun. You were great, Als. I'm really proud of you."

"Thanks," I smiled.

"Oh yeah, what on earth were you thinking about that made you cry that hard? Those tears were just flowing! I mean, that's good for the video, but I've never seen you cry like that."

"Um, I thought of what would happen if I ever lost you and Maci," I told him quietly.

He reached over and grabbed my hand. "Nothing's going to happen to us, alright? I love you."

"I love you, too."

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! It was hard to write the music video scenes, like with the sets and stuff because I have no clue how that stuff actually works, but I hope I did it justice anways! :) The actual premiere of the video and song will be in an upcoming chapter, so stay tuned!**

** If you ever want to chat, just PM me! I love to talk haha. Review it up, guys, love you ALL! :D :D :D **

**WHO IS EXCITED FOR CAMPERS & COMPLICATIONS!? I can't even contain my excitement, like OMG. I'm sure some of you have already seen it, but keep it spoiler free please! :) I'm sure it was amazing! Austin finally likes Ally! LIKE YESYESYESYESYES! :D :D :D Okay, I'm done fangirling :p**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Instagram? joelle_mcmillan**


	8. Finally!

**A/N: Update time! Thanks for all of your reviews and other support, you are all AMAZING! :)**

**Just a reminder if you are new here to read Pregnancy 101 if you haven't already BEFORE you read this one. This is the sequel :) Thanks y'all!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"Strut, strut, strut, and pop! Turn and arms out! Ooonce, ooonce, ooonce."

This Just Dance was a blast. I loved being home alone! Austin had taken Maci to a doctor's appointment since I had been working in the morning, but I got back a half hour ago and they still weren't back. So I thought I'd do a little dancing. I mean, it couldn't hurt. Especially since there was no one around for me to hurt.

"Ah, 3000 points! I'm like the Michael Jackson of our generation. To the right, to the left. Spin, twist, and strut again! Pop and lock. Now go cray cray!"

Pancakes trotted into the room and stood in front of the TV. "Pancakes, look out. I can't see!"

She stared at me as she wagged her tail before jumping up and down. "Pancakes! Now I really can't see! If you're gonna dance, dance away from the TV."

She span in circles before lying down. "Alright, fine. While you're here, how's my dancing? Good? Bad? Come on, Pancakes, I need your opinion."

Pancakes sniffed and her ears perked. "Awe, thanks girl!"

The song ended and "Beauty and a Beat" came on. "Yes! Alright, here we go. Pop, lock, spin, and strut, strut, strut my stuff! What kind of move is _that?_ It looks like a headless chicken running on the spot."

"Believe me, _you_ look like a headless chicken running on the spot," came a voice from behind me.

I shrieked and whipped around to find Austin standing at the door with Maci wrapped around his legs.

"How long have you been standing there?" I panted, pausing the game.

"Not that long."

"Oh thank god," I sighed.

"Pop, lock, spin, and strut, strut, strut my stuff!" He mocked in a high voice.

I rolled my eyes. "Hey, I almost beat your high score."

He glanced at the screen. "You're over five thousand points away!"

"I'm not done." I unpaused the game. "Watch and learn."

"Oh, I'll watch, but I don't think I'll learn anything," he smirked as he scooped up Maci and sat on the couch. Pancakes walked over to them and sat down.

After a few seconds, Austin spoke up. "Hey, how come you're not chanting anymore?"

"I'd rather not now that you guys are here," I said as I span around. "It's reserved for 'Ally Time'."

Austin pouted. "Come on, it was cute."

"No way, josé."

"Fine." I finished the song and saw that I was only two hundred points away from Austin's high score. "Ha!"

"Newsflash: you didn't beat my score."

"It's my personal best, so that is an accomplishment for me!" I shut off the game and flopped down beside them. Maci crawled onto my lap. "Jesus, that is a _workout._ Maci, honey, I'm all sweaty, please stop trying to climb up me."

"No shit, it's dancing. How was work?"

I shrugged. "It was alright. There weren't many people because of that big council barbeque on the beach." Maci stepped on my stomach in her quest to climb up my front and pressed her hands against my face. "Ouch, Maci!"

"She missed you," Austin said. "Oh, the doctor said everything's fine."

"That's great," I smiled, grabbing Maci and sitting her on my lap properly. "You're a healthy girl!"

She giggled and leaned sideways, sticking her legs up on me. "Seriously, what has gotten into you?" I asked as I tried to avoid her squirming feet.

Austin stood up. "I've gotta go call Trish about that show in Orlando."

"Okay." I set Maci on the ground to play with Pancakes. "Can you watch her after while I go take a shower?"

"Yep," he said as he walked into the kitchen.

"Thanks, babe," I called before glancing down at Maci, who was pulling Pancakes' tail. "Maci, stop." I grabbed her monkey and wiggled it in front of her. "Somebody wants to play with you, Mace. Mr. Monkey missed you while you were gone!"

She reached out to take him. I smiled and stroked her head just as Austin came back in. "Show's good for next week."

"Great," I said. "But if you'll excuse me, I can't sit in these clothes for a minute longer. I'm going to shower."

"Mind if I join?" Austin grinned.

"You're watching Maci!" I called over my shoulder on my way to the stairs.

"Damn it! No offense, Maci, I love you, sweetie."

I grinned to myself and hurried upstairs to our bedroom and through the door to the bathroom. I immediately felt better when I was under the hot water.

I finished a while later and got out, walking back to the bedroom. I blow dried my hair and changed into black skinny jeans and a turquoise t-shirt.

"Austin?" I called as I walked back down the stairs.

"What's up?" He was tuning his guitar while Maci sat on the ground playing with her toy drums.

"What do you want for supper?"

"Doesn't matter to me," he replied. "Need any help?"

"I think I'm good, thanks." I walked over to the iPod dock. "We need some music on. It's too quiet."

"Pancay!"

I froze just as I heard Austin drop his guitar. I whipped around and looked at him. "Did you just hear that?"

He nodded in shock, not even caring about the guitar. We both looked at Maci, who was staring at us curiously. Probably wondering what we were looking at.

"Pancay!" She said again.

I shrieked happily as I hurried over to her. "She talked! Holy shit, she's _talking!_ Austin, videotape this!"

Austin whipped out his phone and hit record before sliding onto the ground. "What did you say, Mace?"

"Pancay!" She screeched before clapping her hands. Austin beamed.

"I think she's trying to say Pancakes," he said. He pumped his fist. "Victory! Her first word is pancakes!"

I burst into happy tears and kissed Maci's head before I tackled Austin in a hug. I almost knocked him onto his back. "She talked! She's talking, Austin, she's really talking!"

He laughed and hugged me back before pulling me onto his lap, the video still recording. "She is, Als."

"Maci, can you say 'Momma?'" I coaxed. "Momma? Or 'Dadda?'"

"I think she lost interest," Austin pointed. Maci was playing with her drums again, as if she never spoke.

"Oh well. At least she said something!" I squealed. "Ah, I'm so happy right now!"

Austin shut the phone off and slid it back into his pocket. "Just wait till our parents hear about it. They'll have a field day."

"I'm having a field day!" I exclaimed before pausing. "Wait."

"What?" he asked as I stood up from the ground.

"We need to set some rules now. We should have set them earlier, even."

"Okay," he said slowly, helping Maci with her toy. "What sort of rules?"

"Well, first: the swearing stops around her. Now that she's talking, she'll want to repeat everything we say, and I don't want her swearing."

"Makes sense," Austin nodded. "But I don't get it. You wouldn't let me or yourself swear while you were pregnant with her, yet we swore after she was born?"

"I know, I know, it doesn't make sense. But I mean, we were new parents at such a young age and it was really hard. The bad words just slipped when we were frustrated, and it became instinct. But in all seriousness, we _need_ to stop. Starting now."

"Okay, I agree. What's rule two?"

"Rule two: No bad music. Again, she'll repeat it."

"That fits with rule number one, Ally."

"I'm just being cautious," I told him.

He stood up. "I know you are, but don't make a bunch of rules to keep Maci perfect. I'd say those two rules are good for now."

"Fine," I sighed. We were quiet for a moment before I grinned again. "Maci talked! Did you _hear_ it?"

Austin chuckled and bent to scoop Maci up into his arms, kissing her little head of blonde hair. She rested her head into the crook of his neck and immediately started playing with his hair there. "Just wait, she'll be blabbing away before you know it. Won't be long before you miss the gurgling."

"Oh, nonsense, I can now hear my baby speak actual coherent words," I said. "I'll never get tired of it."

"She better not be another you," Austin said. "Right Maci? I don't think I could handle two girls who never stop talking."

I lightly smacked him. "I don't talk that much."

"Meh, little bit."

I could hear Pancakes whimpering at the front door. "Yes, Pancakes, I'll take you," I called.

"I'll make supper since apparently Maci wants pancakes," Austin said as we headed to the kitchen. "And we all know I'm the best at making pancakes."

"Cocky," I said.

"Not cocky. More like honest."

"Right," I smirked as I grabbed my black leather jacket from the back of a chair and slipped it on. I pulled my long hair out from underneath and it flowed down my back in a cascade of natural waves.

"Just take the dog before she does some damage inside that you don't want her to do," Austin said, setting Maci down before pulling pancake mix out of the cupboard.

"I'm going. I'll be back in a bit." I went out into the hallway and slipped on my black converse before grabbing the leash. Pancakes was jumping at the doorknob.

"Alright, girl, I'm coming. Sheesh," I said as I hooked her up before opening the door. "Let's go."

It was a beautiful day outside, so I decided to take Pancakes to the dog run at the park. As we arrived at the park, there were lots of kids playing with their parents.

I smiled. I couldn't wait to do that with Maci when she got a little older. I remembered when I was watching Sheridan for a few days while Quinn was at the hospital with Jace, and Trish and I took her here. It was a lot of fun.

We walked into the fenced area for the dogs and I let Pancakes off her leash. She took off after a squirrel, so I sat on the bench and pulled out my phone to check Austin's website.

Dez had uploaded a video of Austin drinking hot sauce through his nose ten minutes previously, and it had already gotten over a million views. It amazes me what people watch on the internet.

I texted Dez. _A hot sauce video?_

_Totally! People love it!_ He replied.

I laughed to myself before texting back. _You could probably sell the Kleenex Austin blew his nose in after for a lot of money._

_That's a genius idea._

_Dez, I was kidding!_

_I wasn't._

_Please don't,_ I sent. I heard a few barks and I looked up.

Pancakes was chasing another dog around the park. The dog looked exactly like Pancakes, size and all, except this dog was the color of chocolate. Its owner was in the process of trying to catch it.

"Oh, great," I muttered as I slid my phone in my pocket. I stood up and hurried over. "Hey! Pancakes, no!"

The guy looked at me. He looked my age, tall, with black hair and piercing green eyes. He reminded me of Percy Jackson. And he was really cute.

"I'm assuming this is your dog?" He asked.

I nodded as I tried to grab Pancakes. "Yeah, but she's harmless. I'm so sorry."

"It's no problem," he said. "I'm just glad she's not a stray."

"Pancakes, come here now!" I yelled. I finally grabbed her collar and she sat down at my side again. "Bad girl, you don't chase other dogs, you know that."

"Guess she just thinks my dog is bait," the guy grinned as he hooked his dog back on a leash. He held out his hand. "I'm Jesse. And this is big guy is Blaze."

I shook it. "Ally. I'm sorry about my dog again, she isn't usually like that."

"No worries. Pancakes is quite the name for a dog, but I guess she does look like a pancake. The colour, I mean, not the shape. That would be an odd looking pancake," Jesse joked.

I laughed. "Yeah, my boyfriend loves pancakes, so that's what we named her."

"You know, you look familiar. I swear I've seen you somewhere."

"I'll just give you a sec."

He thought about it. "Got it. Austin Moon's girlfriend," Jesse said. "Do I win?"

I giggled. "You win."

He grinned. "Cool. His music rocks."

I nodded. "I'll tell him you said that. We've also got a daughter, Maci, but I'm sure you already know that, with it being in the tabloids so much last year."

"Actually, I'm not a big fan of gossip sites, or anything gossip related, so no, I didn't know you had a baby." He whistled. "Wow. That must be rough. You look like you're my age, and I'm only 22."

"21; guilty is charged. Yeah, it's hard, but we're making it through. She just turned one in March. She said her first word today, actually," I said.

"Nice," Jesse commented. "That must've been exciting."

"I cried."

He laughed. "I rest my case."

My phone buzzed. "Excuse me," I said as I pulled it out. It was a text from Austin.

_Where are you? It's been over an hour_. _Are you okay? If you don't answer this text, I'm sending a search party out. No joke. Did Pancakes run off or something? Did you get hit by a bus? Or an airplane? Did someone STAB YOU!? ALLY!_

An airplane? I thought weirdly. I quickly sent back,_ I'm fine, relax. No one stabbed me, just calm down. I'm on my way right now._

"I'm really sorry, but I've got to go," I told Jesse.

"That's okay. It was nice meeting you," he said.

"You, too," I said. "C'mon Pancakes. Bye Blaze!"

I turned around and made it about six feet before I heard Jesse shout, "Ally, hold up!"

I turned around to see him jogging up to me. "Yeah?"

"Um, would it be weird if we swapped numbers?" He asked. "I know you have a boyfriend and all, but we could always meet for coffee or something. Keep it platonic."

I hesitated. Austin would freak.

"I swear I won't do anything. It's just, I'm new to the area. But I understand if you say no."

I looked at him. Damn, those green eyes were like emeralds! I relented and pulled out my phone before handing it to him. "Oh, alright."

He tapped his number in before handing me his phone so I could tap mine in. We swapped back. "Thanks."

"You're welcome, but I've really got to go." I waved and walked off with Pancakes.

As Pancakes and I walked out of the park, I couldn't help but think what Austin was going to say when he found out I had swapped numbers with another guy. But guys and girls can be just friends, right?

_Right?_

* * *

**A/N: Oooooh, drama in the works? Guess you'll have to read to find out! Things are only going to get more interesting from here!**

**Who bought LOUD? I downloaded it from Youtube, but it. is. so. FRICKEN AMAZING! LIKE OMFG! :D I've been listening to it ALL day on repeat! Did anyone write LOUD on their wrist today? I did :) If you have instagram, you would probably have seen that tons of people were doing it!**

**I know some of you have probably seen Chapter & Choices because of DCOD, but PLEASE keep it spoiler free. I'm not going to lie, I saw the kissing scene, but that's it. I couldn't help it, especially when it's on EVERY website related to the show. So please, spoiler free until this weekend! :) Thanks a bunch, guys, you're all amazing, no lie!**

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Review review review!**

**Joelle xxx**

**See that? I added another x, just because I love y'all so much! :) MUAHHH! xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Instagram? joelle_mcmillan**


	9. This is Ridiculous

**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry it's been a while, I've been super busy with school. It sucks :( **

**Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, I'm glad you guys liked it! :) Some of you liked how I threw Jesse in there, some of you didn't haha but there has to be a little bit of drama in every story, it can't all be perfect and happy.**

**Enjoy this chapter, guys!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A, but I own every other character not associated with the real show.**

**Oh, and read the ending A/N for super exciting news of mine! If you want to know it :p**

* * *

Ally POV

I heard Austin trudge down the stairs while I was making breakfast. He shuffled into the kitchen shirtless and walked over, leaning down to kiss my temple. "Mmm, morning," he mumbled sleepily.

"Hi," I greeted, flipping pancakes onto his plate.

He smiled tiredly as he shuffled to the table. "You're the best, Als."

"I figured you'd want your favourite breakfast after last night." I brought the orange juice over before sitting down across from him. "Maci finally asleep?"

He nodded. "Like a rock."

"Good. She was so crabby last night."

"No kidding, I'm exhausted," he replied.

Maci had one of her bad nights, unfortunately, and had kept Austin and I awake for most of the night. Oddly, I didn't feel very tired, considering the circumstances. Maybe that's because I couldn't sleep anyways since I still hadn't told Austin about my run in with Jesse. It had only been yesterday when it happened, so technically it hadn't even been 24 hours yet.

I glanced over at my boyfriend, who was shovelling down his pancakes. "Austin?"

"Hmm?" He took his orange juice before grabbing his phone.

"Um, I have to tell you something."

"Just a sec, I want to see who won the game last night." He scrolled through his phone, hardly paying attention.

I tried again. "It's important."

"Uh huh," he said absentmindedly. "Yes! Heat dominated the Lakers! Dez owes me twenty bucks." He kept scrolling while grabbing another pancake. "What did you wanna tell me?"

I took a deep breath. "Please don't freak out."

"Why would I freak out? Is it bad?"

"Uh, that depends on how you look at the situation," I laughed nervously.

He looked up. Now I had his attention. He put his phone down and looked at me. "Ally, what happened?"

"Well," I started, dragging it out. "Remember when I took Pancakes for a walk yesterday?" He nodded, pouring more juice. "I took her to the dog run, and... Well, she started to chase this other dog that looked exactly like her, and the owner of the other dog was having a hard time trying to catch his dog, so I went over and helped him-"

"Ally, just spit it out."

Before I could stop myself, I blurt out, "We swapped numbers!"

Austin was so caught off guard that he dropped his glass of orange juice onto the floor, it smashing in the process. Orange juice went everywhere, but he didn't even flinch.

"Y-you what?" He stuttered. I couldn't tell his reaction. His face was unreadable.

"This guy is new to the area and he's just trying to make friends, so he asked if I would want to go for coffee with him sometime, as friends!" I defended. "He's a nice guy."

"And you bought it?" Austin exclaimed. "Ally, he wants one thing and one thing only, and that's to get in your pants! He's not interested in keeping things on a friendly level."

My mouth dropped open. "Excuse me?"

"You know it's true! I can't believe you gave another guy your number when you're dating me. We have a kid together, for god's sake!"

"Language!"

"You only said not to swear around Maci. And it's necessary in this situation, I'd say!"

"Austin, you don't even know this guy."

"And you do? How long did you talk to him? Hmm? Five minutes maybe? Or did you have a full on chat and that's why you were gone so long?" Austin was fuming.

"Austin, you're overreacting. You know I would _never_ do anything to hurt you. What, I can't have guy friends? I have Dez and Jace, don't I?" I was practically shouting. He was being ridiculous.

"That's different!"

"How?"

"It just is!" Austin said.

I jumped to my feet. "You have Quinn, Trish, and Leah. Hell, girls _throw_ themselves at you whenever they see you! Do you see me freaking out over that? I'm probably not even going to see Jesse again."

"Jesse? You guys are on a first name basis already? That's just great. Next thing you know, you'll be out clubbing and getting cozy with him behind my back when I'm away on tour!" Austin was on his feet now, too.

I felt like I had been slapped. I can't believe he just said that. Wait, why the hell am I thinking about this? "I can't believe you just said that. Nice to know you trust me."

I stalked past him and ran up the stairs, the tears already flowing down my face. "Ally!" He yelled, but I ignored him and ran through our bedroom and into the bathroom, closing the door.

I slid down the door and let the tears fall. Austin was being absolutely ridiculous. I know it might not have been smart to give a guy my number while I had a boyfriend and kid, but honest to god, people act as if it's _illegal_ to be friends with the opposite sex while you're already in a relationship. I was perfectly allowed to have guy friends who stayed my friends. It's not like I had a bunch. Just Dez and Jace! Anyone who knew me knew how much I loved Austin and that I would never, _ever_ hurt him or leave him for another guy. I was a smart girl, I knew how to handle myself.

_Boys and their damn jealousy,_ I thought angrily as I stood up and wiped my eyes. I pulled my phone out of my pocket.

I texted Quinn and Trish. _Got time to go for coffee? I'm in a dilemma._

Quinn replied immediately. _Oh no! Of course I'm free. Time and place?_

Trish replied shortly after. _Duh! Where?_

_Eleven at Ginger's?_

_Sounds good,_ they said.

I turned the shower on and hopped in to freshen up. When I finished, I got out and slowly opened the door to see if Austin was in the bedroom. He wasn't, so I hurried out to change.

First, I checked on Maci. She wasn't in her bed, so Austin must have come and got her while I was in the shower.

I threw on pink skinny jeans with a white shirt and black crop jacket. I blow dried my hair and pulled it back into a long ponytail before doing my makeup.

Slipping on flip flops, I grabbed my purse and phone before heading downstairs. I saw Austin in the living room with Maci.

I stopped at the doorway. "I'm going for coffee with Quinn and Trish."

He looked at me. "I really am going with them," I said impatiently.

"I didn't say anything."

"You were thinking it. I don't know when I'll be back."

"Fine. Bye."

Maci walked over to me. "No, honey, you have to stay with daddy for a while. Mommy's going out." I kissed her forehead before walking into the hallway and out the door.

When I jumped in my car, I set my head on the steering wheel and sighed. I wish I could start yesterday over. Why did I have a weakness for saying no?

I drove off and arrived at Ginger's fifteen minutes later. Quinn and Trish were already inside at a table when I got there.

"I did something incredibly stupid," I said as I flopped down beside Trish across from Quinn. She slid a plate of fries towards me.

Quinn snagged a fry from the plate. "It can't be that bad."

"Oh, it is."

Trish grabbed her drink. "I doubt it. You do tend to overreact about things you think are bad, Ally." She laughed. "I mean, it's not like you gave another guy your number or something."

"Well," I started.

Quinn choked on the fry and Trish spit out her drink. "_Ally!_" They exclaimed when they got themselves together.

"It's not like I meant to hurt anybody!" I defended. "This guy is new to the area and he doesn't have a lot of friends!"

"Ally, I know you meant well, but honey," Quinn shook her head. "That was not a smart move. Did you tell Austin?" I nodded guiltily. "And?"

"He was mad."

"Mad?"

"Okay, he was furious. But he overreacted, too, and you should have heard what he said to me!" I turned to Trish. "T?"

"Sorry, Ally, but I'm with Quinn on this one," she admitted.

"How'd you even meet this guy?" Quinn asked. "What's his name, anyways?"

"Jesse. I took Pancakes to the dog run and she started chasing his dog," I said. "We started talking and ended up swapping numbers. But you guys know that I would never hurt Austin, or leave him for somebody else. Ever. I love him too much."

"We know, Ally," Trish smiled sympathetically. "He'll get over it. You know Austin. He gets extremely jealous."

"Clearly," I scoffed. "That was probably the worst fight we've ever had. And that's saying something, because we never fight."

Quinn took a sip of her drink. "Look at the positive side of things. At least you know Austin cares a lot about losing you, otherwise he wouldn't have acted the way he did. You're just lucky he doesn't know what Jesse looks like or else he'd be a dead man." Quinn paused. "He doesn't know what Jesse looks like, right?"

"No, he doesn't."

Trish spoke up. "So, are you meeting this Jesse guy again?"

"I don't know," I moaned. "He said he wanted to get coffee sometime but he promised it would be strictly platonic. He knows I'm dating Austin, and he respects that."

"At least he had to decency to tell you that. Most guys don't care if a girl is already in a relationship. They'll do anything to get her," she replied.

My phone rang. "That'll be Austin," I sighed. "This should go over fabulous." I answered it. "Hello?"

"Where are you?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes. "Ginger's with Trish and Quinn. I told you that already."

"_No_, you told me you were with Trish and Quinn. Not that you were at Ginger's."

"What does it matter where I am then, if you know who I'm with? Keeping tabs on my whereabouts now?" I snapped.

He was quiet for a moment, and I gasped. "Oh my god, you totally are! I can't believe you, Austin, get over it!"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll just sit back and relax while my girlfriend is quite possibly out with another guy! Why would I ever care about that?" He replied sarcastically.

"How many times do I have to say it? There is _nothing_ going on between me and Jesse, and there never will be! I thought you knew I loved you and you only, but apparently I was wrong."

"Ally, I haven't even met this guy."

"My point exactly! Look, I am _not_ having this conversation with you over the phone, people are starting to stare. I'll be home soon." I hung up and slammed my phone down.

"Wow," Quinn whistled. "Sounds bad." Trish put her arm around me in a comforting gesture.

"Shoot me," I deadpanned before I threw my head on the table. "This day can't get any worse."

"Ally?"

"Or maybe it can."

You have GOT to be kidding me.

* * *

**A/N: You probably know who that is at the end. Don't hate me, you guys, I know you're not going to like that Austin & Ally are fighting over this, but it's good that Ally came clean basically right away instead of not telling Austin. It could have been worse! Plus, I hardcore ship Auslly haha.**

**Who do YOU think is right in this situation? Austin or Ally? Let me know in a review! **

**OMG, guess what, you guys? I'M GOING TO AN R5 CONCERT ON MAY 10TH FOR THEIR LOUD TOUR! :D :D :D :D I'm so beyond excited, I got VIP and everything, and me and my friend are going! It's in Winnipeg, since I'm Canadian and live two hours away from Winnipeg.**

**When they announced the Canadian dates, I was like, "well, they probably won't be coming anywhere close, but I just want to check on the website to see where they're going in Canada" and my younger sisters told me, "Joelle, they're not going to be coming anywhere near here, so don't even bother checking." They aren't R5 fans :( sadly. BUT, I checked anyways and saw WINNIPEG on the schedule, and I absolutely freaked! Screamed and everything! :D I ordered VIP tickets right away and was like, "HA, IN YOUR FACES! I'm meeting my favorite band and idols, and YOU. GUYS. AREN'T!" to my sisters :p**

**My one sister is in love with One Direction. Sorry to those of you who like them, but no. Just no.**

**I'm sure some of you have met R5 and went to their concert before, so how was it? let me know, I love hearing your stories :)**

**So that's my rant for the day, haha. Next update will be whenever I can, I start Drivers Ed on Tuesday, so I'll be busy with that.**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**follow me on instagram too! joelle_mcmillan**


	10. What Have I DONE?

**A/N: Update time! And pretty quick too. Thanks for all the reviews on the last chapter, guys, it really means alot. I almost got 40! :) I love all of you! I know some of you guys didn't like the fight Austin & Ally had, and most of you said Austin was right in the situation, like I figured you would haha, but stories need some drama, or else they get boring! I'm glad some of you agreed with me on that :)**

**Enjoy this chapter :) I know for a fact that I'm going to get virtual arrows shot at me when you finish reading it.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A.**

* * *

**Last time on: Parenting 101**

_"How many times do I have to say it? There is nothing going on between me and Jesse, and there never will be! I thought you knew I loved you and you only, but apparently I was wrong."_

_"Ally, I haven't even met this guy."_

_"My point exactly! Look, I am not having this conversation with you over the phone, people are starting to stare. I'll be home soon." I hung up and slammed my phone down._

_"Wow," Quinn whistled. "Sounds bad." Trish put her arm around me in a comforting gesture._

_"Shoot me," I deadpanned before I threw my head on the table. "This day can't get any worse."_

_"Ally?"_

_"Or maybe it can."_

_You have GOT to be kidding me._

* * *

Ally POV

"Oh, hey, Jesse," I said in a fake cheerful voice as he approached our table with two coffees he had just bought. "How are you?"

"I've been good. You?"

"Awesome," I lied. Trish shot me a look. "Um, Jesse, these are my friends Trish and Quinn. Girls, this is Jesse."

"Hey," they greeted.

"Nice to meet you," Jesse nodded. "So what brings you to Ginger's?"

"We were just catching up," Trish covered. "Grabbing a bite to eat, too." I sent her a thankful look, and she smiled.

Jesse grinned. "Girl talk?"

"You could say that," I mumbled.

"So, Jesse! What brings you to Miami? Ally says you're new to the area?" Quinn asked. She patted the spot beside her and he slid in, much to my horror. Kill me.

Jesse looked at me with a smile. No, no, stop it! "You've already mentioned me?"

"Well, yeah, I was just recapping my walk with Pancakes! Anyone who knows me knows I don't like to leave out any details," I laughed nervously. "Just keeping it real." I put up the peace sign in desperation. "Word."

"Okay!" Trish interrupted. "Better stop her there before things get even weirder!"

"Thanks," I deadpanned.

"Well, back to Quinn's question. I used to live in Orlando, but I just moved to Miami last month for school. I'm studying psychology."

"That deals with like, crazy people and stuff, right?" Trish asked.

Jesse chuckled. "I guess that's one way of putting it, sure."

"That's pretty cool," Quinn nodded. "Sometimes I wonder if my daughter is crazy, but then again, she's only three. It's practically a natural child thing."

I snorted with laughter. "Way to throw Sheridan under the bus."

"Oh, you know I love her more than my life."

"_You_ have a daughter, too?" Jesse asked, clearly shocked. I didn't blame him; Quinn was only 18.

"Feel free to book it," she sighed.

"No! Sorry; I didn't mean to sound rude or anything. I just didn't expect it because...well..."

"I'm young, yes. It's fine, I get it all the time. I'm used to it."

Jesse grinned. "Is she blonde like you?"

"Oh, this isn't my natural hair color," Quinn said quickly, gesturing to her long blonde hair. "I'm actually a brunette. Sheridan's dad had blonde hair."

"Had?"

"Well, technically he _has _blonde hair, but we aren't together anymore. So it's had."

"Oh. Sorry to hear that," Jesse said.

Quinn shrugged. "It was a long time ago."

"So, did you two meet at a birthing class or something?" Jesse asked, pointing between me and Quinn. Trish started laughing.

"No, we met at Britney's Babies," I said.

"Ah. Well, that's cool you guys are friends. You can help each other through motherhood."

My phone buzzed. _I like this guy,_ Trish sent.

I glanced at her and she gave me a look that said _what?_

"Well, sorry to cut our chat short, ladies, but I've got to go. My dad is in town helping me fix up my basement, so I better not keep him waiting for his coffee. It'll be cold soon." Jesse stood up. "It was nice meeting you, Trish and Quinn. Ally, nice seeing you again."

"Yeah," I smiled. "See you later."

"Bye!" The girls chorused.

He grinned and waved before walking out the door.

"Okay, I'll admit, he doesn't seem that bad," Trish said. "My spidey senses are tingling, and they say he's not looking for a relationship from you. My gaydar says he's not gay either."

"Gaydar?"

"Yeah. Radar with gay in front? Come on, Ally, keep up!"

"Sorry, Dez."

"Oh no, I do sound like Dez!" she moaned.

"Jesse is gorgeous," Quinn spoke.

I laughed a genuine laugh this time. "You think that about every guy. You even think Austin is gorgeous."

"True. And yeah, because he is."

I glanced at my watch and stood up. "I should head home. I miss my baby."

"Which one?" Trish said.

I grabbed my purse and glared daggers at her. "Guess."

"Just trying to lighten the mood."

"I'm not in the lightening mood, but thanks for the talk. I needed it," I told them.

"Anytime. Call if you need anything!" Quinn smiled.

"Good luck, girlfriend," Trish said.

I waved and headed out the door to my car.

When I got home, I parked and headed inside into the hallway. I threw my jacket on the coat rack and walked down the hallway into the kitchen.

I set my keys on the counter. "Hello?"

There was no answer, so I walked into the den and found Austin asleep on the couch with Pancakes at his feet.

I backed out and went upstairs to find Maci in bed. I smiled and walked over, bending to kiss her head lightly.

"Sleep tight, sweetie," I whispered. "I love you so much. I hope you know that."

When I got back downstairs, Pancakes walked out of the den and stopped at my feet. "Hey girl," I said, scratching her ears. "Come on."

She followed me to the living room, where I curled up on the chair and grabbed my songbook. I wrote two sentences before I heard Austin get up.

"Here we go," I muttered.

He went to walk past the doorway into the kitchen, but backtracked when he saw me. "You're home early."

"It's almost been two hours."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

There was an awkward silence, and I really just wanted to go back to Ginger's at that point.

"How was your lunch, or whatever you did?" Austin finally asked.

"It was fine," I shrugged.

"See anybody you knew?"

"Yep. Jesse." No sense in hiding it. Look where that got me last time.

Austin's jaw clenched and he whipped around, storming into the kitchen.

"Oh, for god's sake," I muttered, getting off the chair and following my angry boyfriend. "Austin, we have to talk about this!"

"We did, over the phone."

"That wasn't talking about it, and you know it."

"What do you want me to say, Ally? That I'm happy Jesse just _happened_ to show up at Ginger's the same time you were there? Because I'm far from happy!" Austin exclaimed. "I'm telling you, he wants you! How can he only want to be friends with a girl as beautiful as you?"

"He really did just show up! I didn't know he was going to be there," I said. "Austin, you have to believe me. When have I ever lied to you before?"

"That time when you let me believe people were coming to see me perform at Sonic Boom when they were really only coming for the kangaroo!"

Really? That's the best he had? Okay, yes, I did do that, but it was only so his feelings wouldn't be crushed. I was looking out for him!

"That was for your own well being."

"It was still a lie."

I pinched the bridge of my nose, and in a small voice, I said, "Austin. We've been best friends for six years, and I've loved you for five of them. I will always, _always_ love you. Not Bradley Cooper, not George Clooney, not One Direction, and not Jesse. Look, I know I screwed up, and I shouldn't have done what I did. But I only have eyes for _you_." My eyes filled with tears. "And it kills me that you don't seem to believe that."

My boyfriend was quiet, so I continued. "I didn't cheat on you."

"I know that, Ally," Austin said quietly before looking at me. "But it feels like you did."

I wrapped my arms around myself. "I don't know what else to say."

"I just," Austin started. "I need some time. To think."

My head whipped up. "So what are you saying?"

"I'm going to stay at Dez's for a while," he replied.

"A-are you breaking up with me?" I asked thickly.

"I just need space." He slipped past me and upstairs, presumably to pack a bag.

"You didn't answer my question!" I yelled after him, but he didn't reply.

When he came back down, he did have a bag. "I called Dez. He knows I'm coming."

"Did you say bye to Maci?" I asked softly.

Austin nodded, and I saw tears forming in his eyes. Glad to he'll miss at least one of us. He cleared his throat. "Yeah, I did."

It was quiet for a few seconds before I said "Well, uh." I cleared my throat to unblock the lump that was threatening. "I guess I'll see you whenever you get back."

"It won't be long." He walked to the door and opened it. He turned around and quietly said, "Bye, Als." With that, he shut the door, and he was gone.

"Als," I whispered before sliding to the floor and bursting into tears. "What have I _done_?"

* * *

**A/N: And let the hate reviews fly in faster than you can say R5. But come on, you guys, you know I'm an Auslly shipper. Just hang in there and be patient! Thanks y'all :)**

**Review it up! Thanks for reading :) Update will be whenever I can.**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joeller5_**

**Follow me on Instagram too! I changed my name from joelle_mcmillan. It's now r5joellemariee**


	11. Phones Calls & Coffee Runs

**A/N: Hey y'all! Update time :) I think I got at least 54 reviews on my last chapter, which is CRAY CRAY! You guys are AH-MAZING! :D xx**

**I actually didn't get alot of hate like I thought I would since I made Austin & Ally fight and all, so thanks for that! :) Actually, this one girl threw virtual things at me, but we're friends, so it's all cool :p**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"Maci, please don't touch that," I said as I rushed over. I grabbed my phone from her. "Trish, you're supposed to be watching her."

"I am," she replied without looking up from her magazine.

"Trish, I need help more than ever!" I shrieked.

She jumped and looked at me, shocked. "I'm sorry, Ally. Here, the magazine is going back in my bag." She pointedly showed me that she was slipping it in her bag. "There, it's gone."

I sighed and put my hands over my face. "I'm going crazy, Trish. Nothing is the same without Austin here. Even Maci isn't acting like herself! She's been cranky a lot more."

"I wish I could help," Trish said sympathetically.

"You are helping me. It's hard to watch her alone; I don't know how single mothers do it." The word _single_ made me tear up. I threw my hands up. "I screwed up, Trish! I really screwed up this time and I hate myself for it."

"Hey," she said. "Don't hate yourself for this whole Jesse situation. You were just being nice."

"But look where that got me. Austin left!"

"He just needed some time; he's not gone forever, Ally."

I flopped down on the kitchen chair. "It's been four days. I haven't heard from him at all."

Maci walked over. "Momma?"

"I'm fine, Mace," I sniffed as I scooped her up on my lap and kissed her head. "Mommy's just a little sad right now." I embraced my little girl as the tears kept flowing.

"Oh, Ally, I hate seeing you like this," Trish told me as she stood up from her seat at the counter and walked over. "It's killing me."

"I wish I could undo that day."

"Here, give me Maci. I'll take her to your parents place," Trish said. "You need time alone."

"I don't need time alone; I need time with Austin here," I snapped. "With both of my babies here!"

"Ally, it'll be better for Maci," she told me gently.

I sniffed and looked at my best friend before sighing reluctantly. "Fine." I put Maci back on the ground and Trish took her hand. "Go with Auntie Trish, baby. I love you."

"I'll call you later," Trish said.

I nodded and they left.

I wiped my eyes and shakily stood up. I had barely eaten in the days since Austin had left, I had probably gone through three Kleenex boxes from crying all the time, and I was a mess. I just wanted him back home with me and Maci.

I could barely sleep either; the bed felt cold, and everything reminded me of him. Even looking at Pancakes made me want to cry.

I grabbed the photo album I was looking at before and flipped through the pages. I was torturing myself, I know, but I needed to see him, even if it was only in a photo. As I flipped through the pictures when Maci was just a few months old, I sighed sadly. We all looked so happy and carefree. It was when I got to one specific picture that made me lose it again.

It was a picture of me and Austin that Dez had taken the spring before I got pregnant with Maci. We were smiling and staring into each other's eyes with our arms wrapped around each other by the beach.

My phone started ringing from across the room on the table and I slammed the book shut before bolting over to it. I picked it up and quickly said, "Austin?!"

"Ally? It's Jesse."

My heart sank and I could feel fresh tears coming on. "O-oh, hi Jesse. I, um, thought you were Austin."

"Are you okay? You sound like you've been crying."

"I'm fine. It's allergies."

"That's the oldest trick in the book, Ally. I'm not an idiot."

"It really is allergies."

"I caused a fight between you and Austin, didn't I?" Jesse sounded guilty.

"No," I lied.

"Ally."

"I just told him about you, and it kind of spiralled out of control," I burst out. "He left for our friend's place four days ago and he's still not back!"

"Ally, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to cause _any_ trouble between you guys, I swear," Jesse said. "This is probably a bad time, but you might want to talk things out. Want to grab coffee?"

"I guess so," I said. "Give me twenty minutes; I'll meet you at Ginger's."

"Alright, see you."

I hung up and went upstairs to wash my face. I pulled my hair into top knot and went back down. I slipped on flats and grabbed my phone and purse before heading out to my car.

I arrived at Ginger's to find Jesse already in a booth. "Hi," I said as I slid across from him.

"Hey," he smiled lightly. "You okay?"

"No," I sighed. "I'm terrible." The waitress came over and took our orders before leaving.

"Maybe I should talk to Austin?" Jesse suggested.

"I don't think that's a good idea," I told him. "He'll kill you."

"Wow. He's really that mad?"

"He left! Yes, he's mad!" I felt a lump in my throat and I took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Jesse, but I shouldn't have gotten your number." The waitress brought our coffees.

"Hey, it's cool, I understand. I realize that it probably wasn't the smartest idea," he said. "I just wish Austin would see that I'm not interested in anything more than being friends with you."

"Me too." I stopped. "Do you even have a girlfriend?"

"No, I don't." He blushed. "But I kind of have my eye on somebody."

"Really? Who?"

He muttered something incoherent. "What?" I strained to hear.

"Quinn," he mumbled.

"Quinn?" He nodded and I smiled. "Awe. Did you guys hang out again or something?"

"Well, not intentionally. I ran into her at the hardware store yesterday. She was getting stuff for her renovations on her room. We just talked for a bit."

"Ah. But you like her?"

"She seems like a nice girl. She's beautiful, too," Jesse smiled. "But I'm three years older than her."

"Technically two. She turns 19 this year."

"I guess that's not that bad then. I want to hang out with her more. You know, get to know her better." He took a sip of his coffee. "So how's your daughter?"

I shrugged. "Okay. She's been cranky ever since Austin left. She's a little daddy's girl. Nothing's really felt the same. I can't even look at our dog without wanting to burst into tears."

"I feel really bad."

"Don't, it's not your fault. This is between me and Austin."

"Because of me."

"Jesse, let it go. We'll be fine, don't worry about us. We always work it out," I told him before adding jokingly, "You just worry about getting Quinn, alright?"

He grinned. "Deal."

We talked for a bit before I checked my watch. "I should go."

Jesse nodded as we stood up. "It was nice talking to you. If there's anything I can do, let me know. I really am sorry, Ally."

"Again, don't be sorry," I said as we left money and went outside.

He gave me a hug, which shocked me, but I hugged back. "Thanks."

"For what?" I was confused.

"For believing me when I said I just want to be friends. Guys probably don't get that much."

I smiled and nodded. "You're welcome. See you later."

"Bye." We waved and headed to our own cars.

I cried on the way home, damn it all, and by the time I pulled into the driveway, I could have made a saltwater pool out of my tears.

Wiping my eyes, I got out and headed up the walkway. I could hear Pancakes barking inside.

"Pancakes, stop," I groaned as I strolled through the hallway. "Why are you barking?"

I found her in Austin's studio, running in circles. "Um," I started, but I didn't really know what else to say. Instead, I walked over to her and she stopped when she saw me. I pet her head and she whimpered. "I know, girl. I miss him, too," I said softly. "Hopefully he's not gone much longer. Sorry I haven't been paying much attention to you; you remind me of Austin too much," I said thickly. Damn it, why was I such an emotional wreck?!

My phone rang. I checked the caller ID and saw that it was Trish. "Hey," I answered as I stood up and went to the living room on the other side of the house. The house was huge; it took so long to get from room to room. Guess that's the price of living in a mansion.

"Hi. Maci's safe and sound at your parents' place."

"Thanks, Trish," I said.

"Anytime, girlfriend. So what are you doing?"

"I just got back from having coffee with Jesse."

"What!" I had to pull the phone away from my ear.

"Thanks for that," I said sarcastically. "I think you just shattered my ear drum."

She ignored that. "He's the reason you and Austin are in this position! I mean, don't get me wrong, Jesse seems nice and all, but Ally, come on. You're really not helping yourself out."

"Trish, calm down. First of all, it's not Jesse's fault. I'm the one who decided to take his number, he didn't force me to. Second, he only wants to be friends. If it makes you feel better, he kind of likes Quinn."

"Kind of?"

"Well, he barely knows her. He just said he wants to hang out with her more," I told her.

"Hey! You can tell Austin that and he'll come back!" She said happily, forgetting about her previous rage. I think she may be bipolar. Just saying.

"I don't think it works that way, Trish," I sighed sadly. "Besides, he hates me; he doesn't want to talk to me."

"Ally Dawson, Austin Moon does not hate you. He could never* hate you. Don't you say that."

"Sure seems like he does."

"Because he's too stubborn and stupid to see that you didn't mean any intentional harm," she replied.

"I don't know what to do, Trish," I whined. "I miss him so much!"

"I know you do, Ally. Believe me, I can tell. Just hang in there. He'll come around, I know he will."

"How do you know?"

"Because it's Austin. He always does," she said. "No matter what. I'm telling you, girl, he's one of a kind."

"Like everybody tells me," I muttered. "He deserves better than me."

"Hey! Take that back right now, Ally!" Trish yelled.

"It's true, Trish!"

"It's not true and you know it. You two belong together. Now shut up with that smack talk, every single bit of it is a lie."

My phone beeped. "Hold on, I'm getting another call."

"I've got to go anyways. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye." She hung up and I checked the other Caller ID and saw that it was my mom calling. "Hey, mom."

"Hi, honey. How are you doing?"

"Not great. How's Maci?"

"She's fine, she's close to falling asleep. Your dad is watching her."

"Thanks for taking her, I really appreciate it."

"Our pleasure, dear. Everything will be okay, Ally-Gator. I promise."

My eyes pooled. "How do you know? Austin's really mad at me, mom. It's never been this bad."

"Ally, Austin loves you to death. He'll make the right choice."

"What if it's not the choice that will keep this family together?"

"Don't worry so much, honey. It'll give you frown lines, and you really don't want those when you're so young. You have plenty of time to get them when-"

"Mom, this is hardly the time," I snapped.

"Sorry, force of habit. Anyways, as I was saying, just relax. Do something to get your mind off of things!"

"Like what?"

"Why don't you work on a song? Or you can bake? Sleep? Maybe jack up the tunes and dance badly around the house?" She suggested.

"Really, mom? Dancing at a time like this?"

She laughed lightly. "I'm sorry, Ally, I'm just trying to help you."

I sighed. "I know, mom. I'll do something, I promise. I love you."

"I love you too, honey. Call if you need anything, I'll be down there faster than you can say pickles."

I smiled. "I will. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye, Ally." We hung up and I set my phone down on the counter. I looked at it for a second before picking it up and going to Austin's speed dial.

I stared at his number on the screen and my thumb hesitated over the 'Call' button. Should I call him? He was the one who said he needed space, so maybe it would be better if I didn't. I sighed and shut my phone off again. I said all I could have to him when he was here; I had to think positive and happy thoughts for now and make the best of the situation.

"Well, I guess I could go for a nap. Maybe I'll be a bit happier when I get up," I told myself before pausing. "Doubtful."

My phone started ringing. "Hello?" I answered.

"Ally! Turn on your TV to Entertain Me Tonight!" came Trish's shriek from the other end.

"Okay, okay, hold on." I hurried to the living room and grabbed the remote, turning the TV on. "I don't see why you're- oh my pickles!"

"I know!" Trish exclaimed.

Right there, on the screen, was a picture of me and Jesse hugging from earlier that day. Cassie Davis was hosting.

_"Could this young, and certainly attractive, man be Ally Dawson's secret affair? Word has it that she and her rock star boyfriend, and the father of her child, Austin Moon, are currently not on speaking terms. Miss Dawson was spotted earlier today with this guy, and it appeared they were having a coffee date, Austin most likely not in the know. Is it Splitsville for these two stars? And most importantly, what will it mean for their daughter? I'm Cassie Davis, and you're watching Entertain Me Tonight." _

"Oh no, no, no! You have got to be kidding me!" I exclaimed into the phone. "Trish, I swear we didn't do anything; it was a friendly hug."

"I believe you, Ally, I do," Trish said gently.

I paled as a thought struck me. "Austin. Oh god, Trish, he can't see that!"

"Um...well..."

"Trish," I warned.

"He, um, kind of already has."

* * *

**A/N: I am SO bad for these cliffies :/ It just happens!**

**If some of you thought Austin was coming back this chapter...you thought wrong! Unfortunately haha.**

**OMG, I watched Partners & Parachutes on Youtube and I feel bad but I couldn't help it! It was just there...so I had to! I'll be a nice girl and won't spoil anything, but I'll just say that it's ABSOLUTELY AMAZING :D**

**Review it up people! I enjoy reviews... Seriously. Like, more than I enjoy pickles. And I'm in love with pickles. Mmm.**

**Joelle xx Update will be as soon as I possibly can, I know you guys hate waiting! Some of you are very demanding haha.**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Follow me on Instagram! r5joellemariee**


	12. Getting My Mind Off Of It

**A/N: Hey you. Yeah you. The person reading this. Guess what?**

****

YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL AND TOTALLY AWESOME AND DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU DIFFERENT! :D YOU ARE THE BEST!

**Sorry, I had to say that. :) It's totally true! ****Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, you're all amazing! :) Who saw Partners & Parachutes? Holy crap, it was SO FREAKING AMAZING. When Austin serenaded her with that song, which is an absolutely-adorable-and-amazing-song-and-they-better-make-a-full-version-for-it , it was so cute and I was AWWWWW-ing throughout the entire thing. I think I watched it over 15 times...yeah, I have a problem :/ Oh well! :)**

**Here the much anticipated update! You guys have been bugging me for it, so I wanted to get it up! Hope you like it :)**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A.**

* * *

Last time on: Parenting 101

_"Could this young, and certainly attractive, man be Ally Dawson's secret affair? Word has it that she and her rockstar boyfriend, and the father of her child, Austin Moon, are currently not on speaking terms. Miss Dawson was spotted earlier today with another guy, and it appeared they were having a coffee date, Austin most likely not in the know. Is it splitsville for these two stars? And most importantly, what will it mean for their daughter? I'm Cassie Davis, and you're watching Entertain Me Tonight." _

_"Oh no, no, no! You have got to be kidding me!" I exclaimed into the phone. "Trish, I swear we didn't do anything; it was a friendly hug."_

_"I believe you, Ally, I do," Trish said gently._

_I paled as a thought struck me. "Austin. Oh god, Trish, he can't see that!"_

_"Um...well..."_

_"Trish," I warned._

_"He, um, kind of already has."_

* * *

Ally POV

"How is that possible?" I exclaimed.

"I just got a text from Dez saying they've seen it," Trish replied.

"This isn't happening," I groaned, flopping down onto the couch. "Now he'll definitely think I'm cheating on him."

"No, he won't. Austin's smarter than that. Dez just said he watched in silence."

"Yeah, and when Austin is silent, you know he's pissed!"

"Calm down, Ally."

"I hope he doesn't think I'm cheating on him. It's not like I can beg and plead that it wasn't what it looked like; he's not here."

"Ally, stop torturing yourself," Trish said.

"I'm not."

"Yes, you are, and it's not going to help. Why don't we go out? You can bring Maci if you want."

"I'll get her soon, yeah. Sure, it'll get things off my mind," I replied. "What do you want to do?"

"We can get Quinn and hit up Marnie's."

Marnie's was one of the many clubs in Miami. Typical Trish would want to go there.

"Trish, I don't really think it would be good to go clubbing in my current situation," I snapped. "Especially with a baby."

"Fine. But we're going to one soon; we haven't gone in so long. I need to get my freak on."

"Your freak on?" I repeated

"Yeah. That's what I said."

"Whatever," I sighed. "Can we just go to the mall?"

"If you want," Trish said. "I'll get Quinn on the line." I waited for a bit until I heard a phone ringing.

"Hey Trish!" came Quinn's cheery voice.

"Hey Quinn, Ally's here, too."

"Hi Ally!"

"Hey," I said. "We were wondering if you wanted to come to the mall. I saw something on TV I really wish I hadn't, and I need to get my mind off it."

"Oh, yeah, I saw that, too. That's really awful. Things will get better, Ally. I would love to go to the mall, but I promised Sheridan I would take her to watch Leah's softball game. You guys are more than welcome to come if you want."

"You know what? That sounds great right now," I sighed. "What time?"

"Be at the ball park at the high school in a hour!"

"Sounds good," Trish and I said. "See you later."

"Oh, Ally, Sheridan wants you to bring Maci," Quinn added.

"Oh yes, she'll be coming," I laughed lightly. "See you."

"Bye!" Quinn hung up and it was just Trish and I.

"I've got to go get ready. I'll pick you up in half an hour," I told Trish.

"Half an hour? That's only enough time for me to pick out an outfit."

"Trish."

"Okay, fine, I'll cut it down to twenty minutes. Bye," she said. We hung up and I set my phone down before heading upstairs.

I changed into jean shorts and a white t-shirt, throwing my hair in a side braid. See, that took me a minute. And Trish takes thirty?

Slipping on flip flops, I went downstairs and out to the garage to get my car. I called my mom. "Hi, honey," she greeted.

"Hey, mom. I'm coming to get Maci if that's alright with you. We're going to Leah's softball game and Sheridan wants to see her."

"Oh, sure thing. I think she's missed you."

"I miss her, even though it's only been four hours," I smiled. "I'll be there in fifteen."

"I'll have her ready. See you in a bit."

I hung up and continued down the highway. When I arrived at my parents', my mom was walking with Maci down the porch stairs.

Maci's eyes lit up when she saw me and she shrieked. "Momma!"

I smiled as she walked with my mom towards me and I bent down to hug her. "Hi, sweetie. Did you have fun at grandma and grandpa's?"

She smiled in response and I picked her up. I turned to my mom. "Thanks again, mom. I really appreciate it."

"You're most welcome, honey. We always love having her here." She looked at me with sympathy. "I saw the news story."

I groaned. "I wish that never showed. I guess we should have been more careful; it didn't even cross my mind that we might have been followed."

"It'll blow over soon. Just focus on Maci and everything will be fine," my mom told me. "Consider her your little supporter."

"I am, trust me. We better go; I've got to get Trish still."

"Alright, honey. Call if you need anything." My mom pecked Maci's cheek. "Bye, darling."

"Can you say bye to grandma?" I asked Maci.

"Bye gamma!" She piped from my arms.

I smiled. "I'll see you later, mom. Say hi to dad for me."

"Will do. Bye, honey." I waved and put Maci into her car seat in the back before sliding behind the wheel and pulling out of the driveway.

"Guess who you get to see today, Maci?" I said as I glanced in my rear-view mirror. She was busy sucking on her thumb staring at me. "You get to see Sher and Auntie Quinn!"

We called Sheridan 'Sher' around Maci because it was the only thing she could say when she tried to say Sheridan's name. Since Austin and I didn't have any siblings, we considered Quinn and her siblings, and Trish and Dez, Maci's aunts and uncles.

She clapped happily. "Sher!"

I laughed and continued towards Trish's. She was waiting outside when I pulled up to the curb and she got in.

"Wow, I didn't think you'd be waiting already," I said. "That did not take you thirty minutes."

She shrugged. "I didn't have anything else to do."

"No jobs to get fired from lately?"

"I got fired yesterday from Jenna's Jewels. Apparently dressing up in the jewellery and taking pictures of myself on the job is frowned upon."

"Well, no kidding."

"Hey, I looked fabulous in those diamonds!" Trish turned in her seat. "Right, Maci? Auntie Trish looks fabulous? Ha, she nodded at me."

I just shook my head. We got to the high school ten minutes later and parked close to the ball diamond. The teams were warming up.

"There's Quinn and Sheridan," Trish pointed towards the bleachers as I pulled Maci out of her seat and got her stroller out of the trunk.

"Perfect," I said, setting her inside and strapping her in. I passed her monkey to her. "Here, Mace."

"Ooooh," she gurgled, taking it from me happily.

"Will she ever grow out of that thing?" Trish asked as we made our way to the bleachers.

"Eventually. She's not even two yet."

Quinn caught sight of us and waved us over. "Hey!" She greeted as we went over. Sheridan was sitting on a blanket on the ground in front of her mom, eating crackers.

"Hi," I said. I grabbed Maci's hat and stuck it on her head gently. "Hey, Sher Bear."

"Hi!" She quipped. "Hi Maci!"

"Sher!" Maci said. I took Maci out of her stroller and set her on the ground beside the three-year-old, who embraced her in a hug.

"Future best friends right there," Trish commented, making Quinn and I grin.

Leah jogged over in her ball uniform, hair slicked back into a long brown curly ponytail. "Mom says Jace can't make it today. He's got a late class," Quinn told her younger sister.

"That's fine. Hey Trish, Ally," Leah smiled before bending down to the two babies. "And hello to my favourite little girls!"

"Who are you playing?" Quinn asked.

Leah's mood darkened. "Cranston High."

Quinn winced.

"What?" Trish wondered aloud at Quinn's gesture.

"Cranston always plays dirty. They have a history of injuring opposing players," Quinn explained. "And the captains are always total-" She stopped herself and glanced at the two babies before whispering, "Bitches."

"Oh, lovely," I deadpanned. "Try not to get hurt, Leah."

"I'll be fine, Ally," she assured me. "Besides, their captain Rebecca is out with a fractured wrist, thank god; they don't play as rough when the captain isn't playing."

"That's reassuring." I bent down and adjusted Maci's hat.

Leah glanced behind her. "I better go; the game's about to start."

"Good luck," we chorused.

"Go Auntie Leah!" Sheridan shrieked, and Maci clapped her hands before grabbing a baby cracker.

As the game progressed, I could see what Quinn meant when she said Cranston played dirty. Those girls were harsh! Thankfully, there were no injuries, and Leah was a really good ball player. She was definitely eligible for a scholarship.

Leah's team ended up winning, and when the game finished, Leah gathered her things and came over. "Let's hit up Maggie's. I'm starved."

"You're always hungry," Quinn said. Leah stuck her tongue out. "What are you, five?"

"Middle school insult much?" Leah shot back.

"That's something you don't see everyday," Trish muttered to me.

We got into our vehicles and drove to Maggie's. When we arrived twenty minutes later, I cut the engine and we all piled out, heading inside.

"I didn't get a chance to tell you how good of a ball player you are, Leah," I smiled after we had ordered our food.

"Oh, thanks! People seem to think I have that scholarship in the bag, but I don't know," she said. "I guess I'll have to wait and see."

"I think you have a really good chance," Quinn told her. "It's obvious you're an athlete."

"Nope, not me. Well, I could get a gold medal in the Credit Card Olympics, but sadly, that doesn't exist," Trish said, causing everyone to laugh.

Maci said something, but I missed it. "What, baby?"

"Daddy?"

Everyone at the table froze. "W-what?" I stuttered.

"Where's daddy?"

Quinn looked at me with a helpless look that said _I'm sorry_.

I regained composure as I felt the tears threatening. "Um, daddy went away for a while, sweetie," I said quietly.

"Gone?" she asked, looking at me with her big brown eyes, same as Austin's. This was killing me.

"He'll be back soon. He still loves you very, very much," I told her, stroking her hair.

She grabbed her monkey and played with him and I sighed. "I hope she doesn't ask that question again."

"Sheridan did the same thing when Cale left," Quinn told me.

"Cale?"

"Her ex. He's an asshole and will forever be an asshole," Leah spoke up, causing Quinn to elbow her. "Ow!"

"Watch your mouth," Quinn snapped before turning back to me. "Anyways, she eventually stopped asking, and it won't end the same way for you as it did for me. Austin's coming back; I knew Cale wasn't."

"I _hope_ Austin's coming back."

"He will," Trish said firmly.

Our food came and we ate while making small talk. We paid and left right away since Leah had an exam to study for.

"Thanks for coming to my game, guys!" She waved.

"Anytime," I smiled as she strapped Sheridan in the back seat of Quinn's car.

"I'll talk to you guys later," Quinn told me and Trish. "Bye Mace," she said, gently tugging her shirt sleeve.

"See you," we said as I put Maci in her seat.

As we were driving to Trish's, my phone rang throughout the car. "Oh my god, maybe it's Austin!" I hit the talk button on the hands-free calling. "Hello?"

"Hey Ally."

I slammed a hand down on the steering wheel. "Everyone has called me except for the one person I actually want to hear from!"

"Uh, sorry?" Dez said hesitantly.

I sighed. "I'm sorry, Dez. I'm just...well, you know."

"Yeah, I get it."

"Hey Dez," Trish spoke up.

"Trish? What are you doing there?"

Trish rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's idiocy. "I'm pretty much with Ally 24/7, you whack-a-doodle. We're on our way home from Leah's baseball game."

"Oh," he replied.

"Did you need something, Dez?" I asked impatiently.

"Oh yes, right! I was just calling to let you know that Austin's not mad about the article on TV."

"He's not?" I exclaimed.

"Well, he was at first, but he's not anymore."

"You have got to be kidding me. He gets mad at me when I say nothing happened between Jesse and I, but he's fine when it's plastered on TV screens all over America? Why isn't he calling me himself?"

"He's, uh, not ready to talk," Dez said nervously.

"Oh, for the love of-" I stopped myself and let out a huge breath. "You know what? Fine. I know you're listening to this conversation, Austin, I'm not an idiot. So I might as well say this since this is probably the only time I'm going to be on the line with you: if you don't want to come home and work this out face to face, and come back to me and your _daughter_, who both miss you very much, might I add, fine. That's your choice. You may not think we miss you, but we do. You know what Maci said today? She asked where her daddy was." I felt a lump in my throat and let out a short, watery, sarcastic laugh. "I had to tell her you were gone! It killed me! I would never have thought I'd have to say that in my entire life." I took a shaky breath. "I'm done wondering, and I'm done waiting, Austin." And with that, I hung up the phone.

Trish whistled low. "Bet that took a lot of guts."

"I'm just glad it's off my chest," I replied. "Maybe it'll knock some sense into him." I glanced back at Maci. "I can tell she misses him."

"Well, yeah, it's her dad. And your boyfriend."

"I just want him to come home, Trish. To sort this entire thing out so we can go back to being a normal family."

"You will, Ally. Don't worry. You guys belong together."

I sighed. "That's what I think, too."

* * *

**A/N: Still no Austin :( But it's coming soon, so thanks for hanging in there :)**

**Review it up, I love you all, and you're totally amazing :D As I always tell you! Cuz it's true!**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Follow me on Instagram! r5joellemariee**


	13. Come Home

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, you guys rock! :)**

**Here's the next chapter, feel free to scream and dance at the end :p at least I hope you do haha.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A. Oh, and the beginning scene is inspired by a scene in "Life as We Know It." I love that movie, some of you guys have probably seen it and will know what scene it is :)**

* * *

Ally POV

"I'm really glad we got to do this. It's been a long time, hasn't it?" I said. "You know, I don't usually do dinner like this, especially with all of these rumours going around right now. You look really pretty tonight. Is that a new shirt? It really brings out the color of your eyes. What do you think of this meal?"

Maci just stared at me before she stuck the crushed watermelon in her mouth with her fingers.

I sighed and dropped my fork onto my plate. "I'm losing it, Mace. I wish your dad would come home."

Pancakes walked over and set her head on my lap. I looked down. "Hey, girl. You miss him, too?"

She whimpered in response, and I stroked her fur. "I thought so."

It had been another three days, bringing it to a full week since Austin had walked out. Three days since Dez had called and I let out my frustrations to Austin, who I knew was listening on the other end with Dez. I was hoping Austin would have at least called, or *something, but nope. Nothing.

"Maci, you're dripping all over your new shirt," I sighed as I grabbed a napkin and wiped her front. "That's why you use a spoon."

She shook her head hard, kicking her feet. "Okay, okay, use your fingers. Sheesh." That got a wicked grin out of her. Austin and I called it her 'Victory Grin'. It was probably one of the creepiest things we've ever seen.

I glanced at the clock. It was six in the evening. "Awe, nice. The Vampire Diaries is on!"

I grabbed the TV remote and flicked on the TV to the right channel. You could watch TV in the living room from our dining room because the wall seperating the two rooms wasn't a full wall; it was lower, maybe three feet tall.

I watched as I cleaned up mine and Maci's supper. "No! Damon, why'd you turn Elena's humanity off? She's going crazy!" I got really into that show, as you could tell. "It's okay, I still love you. You're lucky you're gorgeous."

If any of you readers watch The Vampire Diaries and are Team Damon, then I, Ally Dawson, am your new best friend. You know where it's at.

I glanced over at Maci when the show finished and saw that she was dozing off. "Oh, sweetie, how can you be tired?" I laughed lightly as I walked over and scooped her up. "You just had a nap not too long ago."

She curled her hands into my hair and yawned, so I took that as a cue to take her to bed. I grabbed her monkey and headed up the grand staircase, Pancakes following close behind.

"Alright, sweetie, stay awake for two more minutes," I told Maci. I set her down and rummaged around in her drawer for pyjamas. Pulling out her favorite Care Bear ones, I quickly but gently undressed her and changed her diaper before slipping her into the pyjamas. I ran a brush through her thick blonde hair before setting her in her crib.

I gently hummed until her eyes closed. When I knew she was asleep, I leaned over and kissed her head before turning her mobile on.

I pointed at Pancakes. "Keep an good eye on her, girl," I whispered. "You always do."

She prodded my knee with her head and curled into a ball at the edge of the crib. I bent to pet her. "Best guard dog ever."

When I got back downstairs, I heard a song playing on the radio that I had left on. When I got closer to the dining room, I recognized the lyrics and voice. It was "I Think About You", the song Austin had serenaded me with back when we were 16.

"And I wonder if you miss me, too. If you don't, here's the one thing that I wish you knew." I sang softly, tears threatening to fall. "I think about you, every morning when I open my eyes. I think about you, every evening when I turn out the lights…"

"Okay, come on, Ally," I scolded myself, wiping my eyes. I flipped off the radio. "Get it together." I grabbed my songbook and went to the piano. Maybe writing would clear my mind and pass the time.

After an hour, I was ready to fall asleep, so I turned out the lights and headed upstairs to the bedroom. After changing into comfy sleep shorts and a tank top, I brushed my teeth and washed my face.

When I got back to the bed, I stared down at it. I did this every night. It felt wrong sleeping alone. When Austin was away at a concert or something work-related, I at least knew that it was for a good reason, so it didn't feel as weird; you know what I mean? But with our current situation...well, it changed the atmosphere. It was just...cold. And lonely.

There was nothing I could do about it, however, so I reluctantly crawled under the blankets on my side of the bed and closed my eyes, trying to block out everything around me.

* * *

All I could hear was crying.

"Maci," I groaned sleepily, rolling over. "Mommy's tired." I glanced at the alarm clock. It was six in the morning.

When she wouldn't stop, I sighed and rolled out of bed, shuffling over to her room. Pancakes was still asleep on the floor.

I gathered Maci in my arms and rubbed her back. "What's wrong, honey?"

She sniffed and kept crying, so I brought her to my bedroom and sat on my bed. "You're probably hungry. Hey?"

I grabbed her bottle from my bedside table that I had made just incase she would wake up and brought it to her lips. She immediately grabbed it.

"I thought that was the problem," I smiled. "You did go to bed early." I shifted her in my lap. "You're not as light as you used to be, Mace. You're getting too big for my liking."

After she finished her bottle, which was fifteen minutes later, she was asleep again, so I brought her back to her bed.

"No point in going back to bed now," I muttered, going downstairs to make breakfast. I decided to make bacon and eggs, and while the stove heated, I turned on music quietly.

"I've seen a million girls, none of them amaze me," I sang as I got the bacon ready. "But when I'm close to you, I start acting crazy."

I went to put it on the frying pan, but my hand skimmed the edge of the pan. I yelped. "Mother fu-"

My phone ringing cut me off, which is probably a good thing. "Who calls this early?" I groaned, sticking my hand under cold water. I answered my phone with the other hand. "Yes?"

"Ally?"

I was so surprised, I dropped my phone. "Shit!" I exclaimed, going to grab it before it hit the floor. I fumbled with it for a second before pressing it back to my ear. "H-hi, Austin. Um, I didn't recognize the number."

"I'm calling from Dez's landline."

"Oh."

It was quiet for a few seconds before Austin spoke again. "Uh, I was just calling to see how you and Maci were doing."

My heart sank and it took all I had not to burst into tears once again. "O-oh. I'm fine. Maci's fine," I lied before snapping, "What, it couldn't have waited until a later time of day?"

"You're usually up this early," Austin shot back. "And apparently I was right. Is that water running?"

"Yes. I burnt my hand."

"On what?"

"The element on the stove," I said impatiently.

"Are you okay?"

For a second, Austin sounded concerned, and I caught a glimpse of his gentler side, but I pushed it away. "I'm fine. Not that you care."

"Ally, why wouldn't I care?" He sighed.

"Um, because you're pissed at me? To the point where you left, might I add."

"If I was still pissed at you, I wouldn't have called you. And I left because I needed space."

"I've given you Grand Canyons of space!"

"Ally, I really don't want to have this conversation over the phone."

"Fine. Then come back home." It sounded like a plead, and truthfully, it was. "Maci misses you." I hesitated before adding, "I miss you."

Austin was quiet before he said on the other end. "Ally, I-"

"Austin, please," I cut him off quietly. "It's been a week. And I know you aren't mad about that news article, or mad about any of this Jesse stuff anymore; Dez told me. So what are you waiting for? Austin, I know you better than anyone; you want to come home."

There was silence for a moment before he finally said in a thick voice, "I'll be there this afternoon."

I smiled to myself. "Okay, good. I'll see you then."

"See you later," he said. I hung up and set my phone down before turning the kitchen tap off and letting out a little girly laugh.

Maybe this will all finally be over with and we can go back to normal.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry it was kind of short, but I wanted to get it up because I was dying to! I know you guys were dying for another chapter as well :p**

**Oh, and on a super duper duper happy note, I got my learner's license! WOOOO! Well, technically I got it on Wednesday :) I am now a partially licensed driver...is that how you would describe that? Well that's how I'm going to describe it, so yay me! :) Lol, London Tipton much? Sorry, I'm in a fabulous mood today :p SPRING BREAK! DOUBLE WOOOO! Oh, and a Rihanna concert on Monday! TRIPLE WOOO! K, I'm done!**

**Reviews make my liiiiiiife! :)**

**Joelle xx**

**Twitter? joelleR5_**

**Follow me on instagram! r5joellemariee**


	14. I'm Sorry

**A/N: Early update! Wooooo! :) Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, y'all are awesome! :D And thanks for those of you that congratulated me on my learner's license :)**

**Austin's back! YAYAYAYAYAYAYA! :) Hope you enjoy this, it's pretty cheesy, but I'm sure you guys love cheesiness haha I know I do.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"That's great, Ally," Trish smiled as I told her about my phone call with Austin. "I knew he would come through."

We were sitting in my bedroom flipping through magazines while Maci played with her toy piano. She had been at Dez's previously, but he had dropped her off here because he said he was doing something.

"Well, I kind of pleaded for him to come back," I admitted.

Trish looked uncomfortable. "Actually, Austin told Dez and me that he was planning on coming back before, but he didn't know what to say, or what _you_ would say, so he stayed longer. He got over the Jesse thing like, three days after he left."

I gaped at her. "You mean to tell me that for four days, he's just been sitting at Dez's place? And he didn't even call?"

"Um... yes?" she laughed nervously.

"What! Why are you telling me this now?" I exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, Ally, I should've told you sooner," she said guiltily.

I sighed. "I guess it doesn't really matter. He's finally coming home." I paused. "So then I actually _didn't_ beg? Or I did?"

"Technically, yes. But theoretically, no. So let's just go with the second one!" Trish told me.

Maci slammed her hands down on the piano keys, making Trish and I jump at the guttural sound it made.

"You go, girl," Trish laughed at her. "She's already starting to play an instrument."

I smiled over at Maci, who was busy giggling like a maniac every time she hit a key. "Yeah; I think she's going to be exactly like Austin. Looks and all."

"What makes you think that?"

"I just have a feeling. She already looks like him."

"You're crazy. She has your eyes and nose, but she'll definitely have Austin's hair color. Unless it darkens up as she gets older."

I shrugged. "Guess we'll find out."

Trish's phone rang, and she answered after I gave her the okay. "Hello?" She paused for a few seconds. "Whoa, whoa, Dez, slow down." She clenched her jaw and screeched, "You did what?"

_This can't be good_, I thought.

"I'm coming to your place right now, you are so _dead_," she said angrily before hanging up.

"What's wrong?"

"Dez wrecked my car _again_. This time he slammed it back into that big tree by his driveway!" Trish was fuming. "He's paying for it again, I swear to it."

I winced. "Tell him it was nice knowing him for me."

"Oh, I will," she said, grabbing her jacket. "I'll call you later, girlfriend."

"Bye," I waved, and she walked out the door. I heard the front door slam a minute later, and I turned to Maci. "Auntie Trish is on a murderous rampage. I don't know if you'll ever see Uncle Dez again."

"Unca Dez?" she repeated.

"Yeah, baby. Eh, he should be fine. I hope." I stood up and straightened my shirt. "Ready for your supper?"

"No!"

I laughed and bent to scoop her up. "No, no, no!" She yelled, trying to push out of my grip.

"Sadly, you don't have a choice, Mace, you need to eat. Come on, you can play with Barbie after."

"Momma, noooo! I wanna play wif ma tooooy!" She struggled the whole way to the kitchen, where I set her down on the ground so I could get the food ready. What was with her?

"God, where's Austin when I need him?" I groaned. "Maci Harmony, you stop it right now," I said sharply as I hurried to grab her. She had been trying to crawl away into the hallway.

"No food, momma. No!" I set her in her play pen so she couldn't get away again.

"Maci, play with Boo right now, please?" Boo was her stuffed bunny.

While she cried in her pen, I rushed around trying to get her food ready, and when I finally did, I was ready to rip my ears off so I couldn't hear anything.

"Maci, do you want a time out?" I snapped, setting her in her highchair with much difficulty. I grabbed her food and stuck the spoon in. "Open up."

She rubbed her fists in her eyes and shook her head. "Maci, you need to eat. Come on, do it for mommy."

She had never done this before, but she actually reached out and pushed the spoon away from her. I gasped. "Maci, you don't do that!"

She started screaming again, so I gave up and took her out of the highchair, only to set her back in her play pen, taking the toys out. "Fine, you can have a time out instead. Pancakes, supper!"

Pancakes came into the kitchen, tail wagging, and I poured her some food. "Maci, you'll be in there longer if you don't stop crying!"

"I want dadda!"

So that's what this was about. I guess she had finally reached that point. "Well, he's not here," I said distractedly. "So tough luck." I flopped down on a chair and sighed tiredly, throwing my head in my hands. "Maci, stop," I begged. "You're never like this. I know you miss your dad, baby."

For the next half hour, I listened to her screaming and crying and kicking in her pen, until she finally ended up crying herself to sleep.

"Thank god," I sighed quietly, gently scooping her up and bringing her upstairs to her bed. After she was tucked in safe and sound, I looked down at her sleeping form. Her eyes were still red and blotchy, and I felt guilty for putting her through this. She wasn't even two yet and she already had to watch her parents separate for a bit, not that she knew what was happening. But one thing she did know was that Austin wasn't around, and she didn't like it one bit.

Kissing her forehead softly, I walked through the door to our bedroom and changed into black sweats and a blue t-shirt, throwing my hair up into a messy bun. I washed my face in the bathroom and examined it in the mirror.

Since I hadn't been getting lots of sleep or been eating much, I looked malnourished. A face with dark under eye circles and a paler complexion than usual stared back at me. "Lovely," I muttered.

Slipping on slippers, I went back downstairs and into the living room, only to yelp in surprise.

Austin was sitting on the chair looking at the photo album I was looking at a few days after he had left. He looked pretty tired, like he hadn't sleep much either. Pancakes was at his feet, a happy girl again.

He looked up when he heard me. "Hey," he said.

"Um, h-hi," I said in shock. "You almost gave me a heart attack; I didn't even hear you come in."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," he said. He looked at me closer, face filled with worry. "Ally, you look like you've lost five pounds and haven't slept in days."

"Yeah, well, you know why. I could say the same for you." I slowly walked into the room and sat on the couch, staying silent.

"Where's Maci?" Austin asked.

"I just put her to bed; she was screaming and crying for over an hour."

"Really?"

"She didn't want to eat." I looked at him. "And because she missed her daddy. She asked for you."

He gave me a pained look before looking down at the book again. He smiled lightly. "These pictures bring back memories." His brow furrowed and he glanced at me. "Are these tear stains?"

"Yeah. I was looking at it, too." I looked him in the eye. "I needed to see pictures back before I screwed everything up."

Austin cleared his throat. "I did a lot of thinking when I was gone. I may have gone overboard about the whole Jesse thing. I said some things that I know I shouldn't have, and I'm really sorry, Ally."

"Trish told me you got over it shortly after you got to Dez's, so why didn't you come home?"

"I didn't know what to tell you," he admitted. "I was scared of what you would say."

"What _I_ would say? Austin, this is _my_ fault, not yours, and I'm sorry I put us in this position in the first place," I said quietly. "I was an idiot, but you have to believe me, I was just trying to be friendly."

"I know, Als," he said softly. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"You were spying on me!" I burst out, tears threatening to form. "I can't believe you would do that!"

"I shouldn't have done it," Austin admitted guiltily. "It was completely wrong, and I'll never, _ever_ do it again. I just... I didn't like the thought of you being associated with any guys except for Dez and Jace. I trust them, and I don't know this Jesse guy."

"But I love _you_," I said. "You and only you."

"I know you do. I guess I got jealous." He looked at me with tears in his eyes. "I just don't want to lose you, Ally. You and Maci mean everything to me."

I put my face in my hands and started crying. "Oh, Als, don't you cry, too," Austin said.

"I can't help it," I said thickly, wiping my eyes. "I'm sorry about everything, Austin, I truly am. I wasn't trying to hurt you, but I obviously did badly, and I'm so sorry for it! I love you so so much, and I missed you when you were gone. Everything reminded me of you and I couldn't take it. And that news story; that wasn't what it looked like, we just went for coffee because Jesse wanted to talk to me, and that's it!"

I heard my boyfriend get up. I took my face out of my hands to see him standing in front of me so I jumped up and threw my arms around him, bursting into fresh tears. He wrapped his arms securely around me in return. I hadn't touched him in so long, and it felt so good to be back in his strong, warm arms.

"I missed you, too," he said gently into my hair. "You and Maci both." He rubbed my back. "I love you."

"I love you," I replied into his chest. "Forever."

He rocked me gently and rested his chin on my head. "I guess we both need to work on some things. You need to become less nice and I need to work on my jealousy issues."

I giggled and bent my head back so I could look up at him. "Deal."

He wiped my eyes and smiled before he bent his head to kiss me for the first time in a week. It was well needed.

"I guess I should tell you that Jesse likes Quinn," I sniffed when we pulled apart.

"Seriously?" I nodded. "Well, that's good. Maybe I _will_ end up liking this guy after all."

"He's a good guy, Austin. He feels bad for what happened."

"I'll talk to him."

I looked at my boyfriend. "Don't kill him."

Austin chuckled and kissed my forehead. "Relax, babe, I won't get physical."

"I'll take your word for that. The last thing I need is you being thrown in jail. _Again_."

"Hey, we didn't technically go to jail when we were caught in the ice cream shop! We _almost_ did. There's a difference."

"Not a huge one," I told him. "But anyways, are you hungry? There are leftovers since Maci didn't eat anything."

"Sounds great," Austin smiled, putting his arm around me as we walked to the kitchen. "I missed your cooking."

I grinned, and a thought struck me. "Oh yeah, how did Dez end up crashing Trish's car again? She was here earlier when he called her."

Austin laughed nervously. "Um, it's a long story..."

* * *

**A/N: Wow, we've got a grouchy Maci in this chapter! The end is NOT a cliffy, just saying. It might sound like it is, but it's not. ****The next chapter will start somewhere completely different haha. Review it up, guys, you're all awesome and I love you all! Update will probably not be as soon as this one was, I'll do it as soon as I can, I always do :)**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Follow me on Instagram! r5joellemariee**


	15. The Doctor Is In

**A/N: I am soooooooo sorry for not updating for like, three weeks! I have been so unbelievably SWAMPED with homework, studying, sports practices, and Driver's Ed twice a week, and it's just all so overwhelming, so I haven't had ANY time to write :\ I missed you guys every day, believe me! But thank you guys for being so patient with me, and for reviewing and reading this story, and for all of your support on it, you're all so amazing and I seriously love all of you guys. Is it weird I consider you guys my fans? Because I do :) You're all awesome!**

**Here's a long chapter to make up for my absence and lack of uploading! Enjoy :)**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"What do you want with your pancakes?"

"Just pancakes is fine."

"You sure you don't want strawberries? Or raspberries?"

"Pancakes is good, Ally, I'm fine."

"Or orange juice, or-"

"Ally!" Austin laughed. "I promise I'm fine."

"Sorry, I'm just trying to make up for being an idiot," I admitted. It was only the morning after Austin came back, and he hadn't seen Maci yet. Well, he had, but not when she was awake. I was in the process of making him an "I'm Sorry" breakfast.

"We've been over this, Als, don't be sorry. We're good now," he smiled. "But seriously, I'm good with just pancakes. I could eat these all day."

"Fine," I sighed. "If you insist." I grabbed my plate and joined him at the table. "So what are you doing today?"

"Whatever you're doing," he shrugged before shoving a pancake in his mouth.

"Well, I was going to clean the house."

"Then cleaning the house it is!" Austin announced.

"Seriously?" I laughed. "That's the first time you've willingly wanted to help clean."

"That's not true!"

"Name one more time you offered to help," I challenged.

"Well, there was that time when I did the dishes."

"You did the dishes? When was that?"

"Ha ha. I've done them lots, but I'm talking about that time when Trish was over and you were helping Trish with some work crisis."

"I asked you to do them that time."

"Hey, the point is, I have helped you clean before," he said.

Before I could say anything, the baby monitor indicated that Maci was awake.

"I'll get her," I said as I got up and walked out of the kitchen to the grand staircase, trekking up them and down the hallway into Maci's room. She was standing in her crib with her hands on the side, eyes watery.

"Don't want to sleep anymore?" I asked her as I hauled her out and went back into the hallway. "Guess who wants to see you? Let's go see daddy."

"Daddy?" she murmured.

"Yeah, daddy," I smiled as I headed downstairs.

I shifted her to my other side as I walked down the hallway and into the kitchen, where Austin was chugging his milk.

"Who's that?" I asked Maci as I set her down.

Austin looked over. His face immediately broke into a huge grin, and he turned in his chair with his arms out. "Hey, sweetie. Come here."

"Daddy!" Maci hurried over to him. I slipped back into my seat across from him.

"Oh," Austin groaned as he hauled her up. "Jeez, Maci, I swear you're getting heavier every day." He kissed her forehead and then her cheek. "I missed you so much, girlie."

I smiled as Maci curled herself into his arms, her fists going into his blond hair. "She missed you, too, I can tell you that much."

He gently set his cheek on her head and closed his eyes, and when he opened them again a few seconds later, they were watery.

I didn't say anything because I knew what he was thinking. I just quietly got up and walked around the table to where he was sitting and slid onto his lap. I wrapped my arms around him and he buried his face in my neck while he cried.

"Shh," I said softly as I stroked his back.

"I'm so sorry for leaving you two," Austin sobbed, pulling Maci closer. "I feel like a complete ass."

"Hey," I said sharply. "Look at me. Austin, look at me."

When he did, I set my hand on his cheek to hold him in place. "You have nothing to be sorry about. It's over. You're back, Maci's happy. Everybody's happy. Okay?"

He drew in a shaky breath and looked away. "You understand me, Austin Monica Moon?"

"Okay," he said quietly.

"Good."

Maci's stomach growled, and Austin started laughing. "I guess you need to eat, too. I'll feed you."

"I'll get her food." I slid off his lap and went to the cupboards to grab some strawberries, mashing them up. I walked back to the table and set the bowl in front of Austin.

While Austin fed Maci, I could see that he was the happiest he had been in so long, being back with his family. It was evident that Maci was the same. I watched while I finished eating as my boyfriend played around with her, laughing and smiling as she shrieked and giggled.

"Now, let's clean up our dishes and get to work on the house. Maci's toys are all over the place, so she is obligated to help. Right, Mace?" I lightly poked her stomach.

She shook her head, and Austin and I laughed. I slid off of his lap and gathered my dishes. "I'll start in the living room."

"I'll do the den and Maci's play room," Austin said, setting Maci down so he could clean up his spot.

"I'll start with the living room, I guess. Maci's toys are all over the place in there." I loaded the dishwasher with the dishes and turned it on. I turned to Austin. "Alright, let's do this."

* * *

"Maci, where's your dad? I can't find him."

She looked at me and continued to bounce in her bouncer. "Alright, then. Well, I guess-"

"I'm ready to clean, Als!"

I turned around to find Austin decked out in a full body apron over older clothes, rubber gloves, a broom in one hand and a bucket of water in the other, rubber boots, and a sweat band around his head.

I burst out laughing. "What the heck are you _wearing?_"

"I'm wearing my cleaning clothes. Duh."

"See, now this is what tells me you never clean," I smirked, crossing my arms. "Maci, your dad has lost his mind."

"Hey, it won't be _me _complaining when I spill bleach or get dirt all over myself," he defended.

I walked over and leaned up to kiss his cheek. "At least you look cute. But please, take the sweat band off."

He pouted. "Nu uh; I rock it."

"Austin-"

"Ally."

"Austin, can you please take it off?"

"Ner."

"Did you just say _ner_?"

"Yer."

"Did you just-"

"Bark."

I let out a breath of exasperation. "Lord help us all. Fine, keep that band on."

Austin fist pumped. "Yes!" He galloped over to Maci- yes, he galloped- and bent to kiss her head. "Daddy wins again, Mace!"

She chewed on her rubber toy keys while kicking her legs and I grinned. "Okay, Mr. Clean. Go get started on the den."

"On it!" He ran into the hallway.

"Austin, don't run, you're carrying a bucket of-"

I heard a big splash on the ground and a "Dammit!" shortly after.

I sighed. "Water." I picked Maci up and carried her and her bouncer to the living room before setting her back down in it. I started picking up some of her toys and setting them back in their box or her playpen, and I grabbed the blankets from the couch, folding them again. Maci started whimpering a bit.

"Hey, Austin?" I called.

"What, babe?" he yelled back from the other side of the house. I barely heard him; it was a huge house. Well, mansion, if you want to get technical.

"Where did you put Maci's pacifier?"

"Uh, I think I put it on the table in the hallway!"

I walked into the hallway and found it where he said. "Thanks!"

I hurried back to Maci and popped it in her mouth. "Here you go, sweetie. I know, this isn't very fun to watch."

After I swept the floor, Austin walked in, covered in water. I stifled a laugh at his face. "You've got a little water on your apron," I teased.

"Ha, you're funny."

"I told you not to run with the bucket of water," I chastised.

"You tell me lots of things that I do the opposite of."

"Which makes you an idiot."

He grinned and sauntered over to me. "A very handsome and sexy idiot?"

I smirked and ducked out of his reach. "Don't even try hugging me right now."

"Why not?"

"Because you're covered in water!"

Austin turned to Maci. "Your mom is being mean to me."

Maci tilted her head at him and made a little, "Eh?" sound.

I smiled. "You still have Maci's play room to clean. Go before I cave in to your advances."

"My advances?" he smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Will you quite possibly cave in to them tonight?" He wiggled his eyebrows.

I rolled my eyes and shoved him in the shoulder. "Fine."

He grinned. "Cool." He left the room again and I bent to pick up another one of Maci's toys.

"Maci, you have way too many toys," I told her. "They're everywhere. It's like we run a toy shop."

She giggled and looked up at me from her bouncer. "You think that's funny? What happens if somebody-"

As I was talking, I was walking towards the TV to wipe it down, and apparently, I had forgotten to pick up her squeaky puppy. So you can imagine what happened when I took a step and landed on the toy. There goes my ankle.

"Ow!" I yelled as I fell on my knees.

I heard footsteps running in the hallway and Austin appeared in the doorway a few seconds later. "What happened?" He asked as he ran over to me.

"I just stepped on Maci's damn puppy!" I exclaimed.

"Can you walk?" he said, going to help me.

I waved him off. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I got up and as I took as step, pain shot through my ankle. "Okay, I'm not fine!" Austin caught me under my armpits as I lost my balance.

"Here, let's get you to the couch." He put his arms around me and supported me as I hopped to the couch and lied down. He kneeled in front of me. "Here, let me see it."

I started laughing. "What's so funny?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, but I can't take you seriously right now while you're wearing that outfit. Especially with that sweat band around your head."

He pulled the apron and gloves off and ripped the sweat band off his head. "Better?"

I nodded. He was still wearing the rubber boots, but whatever, it wasn't as ridiculous. "Good. Now show me your ankle."

I stuck my left foot out at him and he carefully pushed the bottom of my skinny jeans up from my ankle and winced. "Ally, that doesn't look good at all."

"What are you talking about?" I went to look. "I'm sure it's- oooh, yeah, you're right." I tilted my head. "I don't think it's supposed to be that big."

"I think you might have broken it, Als. We should get you to the doctor. Like now."

I groaned. "Ugh, do we have to?"

"Yes! Just hold on." Austin stood up and left the room. He came back with an icepack and a couple towels. He wrapped the icepack in one towel and set it on my ankle before wrapping the other towel around it to hold it in place. "There, that's all we can do for now." He then went over to Maci, hauling her out of her bouncer. "Alright, princess, time to take mommy to the doctor." He bent to wrap his free arm around me and helped me stand up. He turned around. "Get on my back."

"I can't get on your back when you're holding Maci!"

He set Maci on the couch. "Get on my back _now_."

I rolled my eyes and crawled on, wrapping my arms around his shoulders. He bent to pick Maci up again. Talk about multi tasking.

"How the heck-"

"Ally, I'm strong. I can handle a one year old, and you, you're just….well, you're a small girl."

"Thanks," I deadpanned as he slowly made his way out to the vehicle.

"Just be quiet and let me help you." He bent and I slid off his back when we got to the vehicle and slipped into the passenger seat while he strapped Maci in. A moment later, he jumped in the driver's seat and pulled out of the driveway.

"How does it feel?" Austin asked.

"Not too bad. It's throbbing, but it's not unbearable," I replied.

"I'm serious, Ally, I think it's broken."

"Well, I seriously hope it's not. I can't afford to be in a cast for six weeks, especially with Maci."

"You might have to be, unfortunately. But hey, you've got me and everybody else to help."

I crossed my arms. "All because of a stupid toy puppy. Curse it."

Austin patted my leg. "Awe, don't hate on the puppy."

"Sorry," I mumbled.

He smiled and, a few minutes later, pulled into hospital parking lot near the emergency entrance. I opened my door when he cut the engine and slid out slowly, standing on one leg while he got Maci's stroller out of the back of the vehicle and set her in it. He pushed her over and told me to get on his back again, and I did this time without complaining, seeing as how it would be easier for him with Maci in the stroller now.

Since he couldn't exactly hold me on his back because he was pushing the stroller, I had to hold on pretty hard, and without choking him, too. It was pretty difficult.

"How can I help you, kids?" the receptionist asked kindly, although she did look at us funny when she said _kids_ and saw Maci in the stroller in front of us.

"My girlfriend tripped on one of our daughter's toys, and hurt her ankle pretty badly. I'm no doctor, but it looks broken to me," Austin told her. Yep, there's the confirmation the receptionist needed, by the look on her face.

"How much pain are you in, honey?" She asked me.

"A lot now," I said through gritted teeth, which was true. My ankle had started throbbing severely a couple minutes before getting to the hospital. "Can I get some pain meds?"

"I'll get a doctor. You guys can wait over there." She stood up and walked into the back room before coming back out with a wheelchair. Awe, bless her heart.

"Thanks," Austin said gratefully as he took it. I slid down and sat in it. Austin took Maci out of her stroller and set her on my lap. "She's going to have to sit on your lap; I can't push you both."

I nodded. "That's fine."

He folded the stroller up and carried it under his arm as he pushed me towards the waiting room.

"We better not have to wait long," I groaned. "It's seriously starting to hurt, Austin."

"I know, Als, just hang in there," he said gently.

"I'm trying," I snapped before softening. "I'm sorry, Austin, it's not your fault. I appreciate the help."

"Nah, it's fine. It's not nearly as bad as when you were in labour. Now _that _was awful." I slapped him across the arm. "Ow!"

"Shut up."

A male doctor came into the room. "Ally Dawson?"

"That's me," I said as Austin stood up.

"Follow me," he said as we started down the hallway. Once we got to the room, Austin put Maci on a chair before he picked me up and sat me on the bed. He went over to the chair and sat in it with Maci in his lap.

"I'm Dr. Stevens. It looks like we've got an ankle injury, correct?" the doctor said kindly. He was fairly young, maybe in his late twenties or early thirties.

"Looks like it," I said. "I tripped on one of her toys." I gestured at Maci.

"How long ago did it happen?" Dr. Stevens asked as he bent to examine it.

"Maybe half an hour ago, if that."

He whistled. "Yep, we're going to have to x-ray that. It's very possible it's a fracture or a break."

"Lovely," I muttered. "Maci, from now on, you do NOT leave your toys everywhere."

"Kay, mommy!" she piped from Austin's lap.

The doctor smiled. "Come on; let's get you to the x-ray room."

* * *

"So, blue, black, pink, purple, green, or white cast?" the doctor asked me.

"I guess I'll go with the pink," I said.

Turns out I really _did_ break my ankle, as Austin predicted. Damn it ALL.

"So how long do I have to have this thing on?" I asked as the doctor got to work.

"Six weeks, then you'll have to come back in so we can take a look at it. If it isn't set, we may have to do surgery."

"Surgery?" I squeaked. Austin squeezed my hand.

"It's highly unlikely," Dr. Stevens said. "But there is a slight possibility. Don't worry, it won't affect anything. It's a small procedure, but no sense in worrying about it when you most likely won't need it. Let's just deal with that when the time comes."

I nodded weakly. "Okay."

"While you're in this cast, you can't do a lot of things, obviously, since you'll be on crutches. If you want, we can supply you with a wheelchair as well if it makes transportation easier."

"That would be good, thanks," I said. "It'll make moving Maci around easier."

The doctor nodded. "Bathing will be easier than showering, but if you feel like you can shower, you may. You'll want your boyfriend here to help you with that."

Austin and I went red in the face. I mean, it was no embarrassment to us, because, you know, we had seen everything of each other numerous times, obviously. But it was embarrassing having the doctor tell you things like that.

"Wrap it in plastic so the cast doesn't get wet. If the cast gets wet at any time, come back and we'll change it. Keep the ankle elevated for the first few days as much as possible."

Austin nodded, taking everything in. "Have fun playing doctor," I said to him.

"Not like I have a choice," he replied.

As Dr. Stevens was putting the cast on my ankle, Maci was getting cranky so Austin was trying to keep her entertained by bouncing her on his lap. When she finally started squirming in his arms, and Austin was having trouble holding her, he sighed and stood up. "You know what, Ally, I'm just going to take her out to the waiting room. I'll talk to the receptionist and set up another appointment."

"Alright," I said. He left the room.

When the doctor finished, I inspected the cast. Bright pink and fun on the outside. Not so bright pink and fun on the inside.

"Thanks, Dr. Stevens," I said gratefully.

"No problem, Ally. I'll prescribe some pain medication for you as well."

"Awesome," I sighed, which made him grin. After he prescribed me with the meds, he gave me some crutches and fixed them so they were suitable for my height. He wheeled me out to the waiting room where Austin was waiting by the door.

"Hey," he said. "Looks good."

"Doesn't feel good," I replied.

"Thanks again, doctor," Austin said, shaking his hand.

"You're most welcome, Mr. Moon. Call if you have any questions, or if you have any concerns with the ankle."

"We will," I assured him. The doctor waved and went off down the hall again. Austin set Maci in my lap, who was now sleeping.

"She was quiet as soon as we got out here," he said as he wheeled me to the vehicle.

"I don't blame her; I would hate being cooped up in that room for that long too if I was her."

When we got home, Austin put Maci to bed after he helped me to the couch and grabbed a few pillows to elevate my ankle. While he was upstairs, I grabbed the TV remote to see if anything good was on.

Austin sat down beside my feet when he came back down. "Hey, cripple."

"Call me that one more time," I threatened.

He put his hands up. "Sorry, I had to."

I sighed. "I feel so hopeless. I can't believe I broke my ankle. Now I have this stupid cast on for six weeks!

"Ally, getting mad at the cast isn't going to do anything."

"I know, I'm just upset."

He leaned over carefully and kissed me quickly. "You've got me to help you with everything, and Trish, Dez, your parents, my parents, Quinn's family." He paused. "And Jesse."

My eyes brightened. "You'll meet him!?"

"Yes, I'll meet him."

"Yay!" I exclaimed, grabbing him in a hug. "But don't kill him."

"Jesus, Ally, I won't. Relax," Austin said.

"Sorry." I winced. "That's sore."

"Yeah, it's going to be for a while. Do you need anything?"

"Can you get me a glass of water?"

"Of course." He jumped up and went into the kitchen. A few minutes later, he came back with my water and handed it to me.

"Thanks," I smiled. "You're the best."

"I try," he grinned. "This doctor thing is going to be quite the adjustment. I'll have to take time off of my music."

"No, no, don't be ridiculous. I can still move around and do things."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Alright," Austin said. "If you say so." He kissed my forehead. "I love you."

"Love you more," I replied.

"Wanna watch a movie? I figure since you're going to be a couch potato for a few days, might as well watch some good movies!" Austin said, sitting down beside me again.

"Sure," I laughed as he flipped through them. "What do you want to watch?"

"Wreck It Ralph."

"Of course you do," I sighed.

"That's my favourite movie right now."

"Believe me, I know."

* * *

**A/N: Awe, broken ankle! Poor Ally :( Read and review it up! :) Now, I'm going to try REALLY hard to update as soon as I can, but I'm still really busy. But luckily driver's ed is over soon so I won't be as busy, but I still will be :/ oh dear, the life of a teenager!**

**Can we just emphasize on the fact that the R5 concert I'm going to is in 19 days? OMG! :D So excited! First time going, first time meeting them! I'll die :p**

**Love you all! **

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Follow me on instagram! r5joellemariee and my other account r5giirl**


	16. Baths & Bratty Babies

**A/N: I have a legitimate excuse for not updating. My computer thought it would be cool to stop working so we had to take it in to get it fixed and it took FOREVER. Well, not actually, but to me, it totally was. *sigh* Technology. **

**But I'm back and hopefully I can update more since my Driver's Ed is over! But...fastball is starting now :/ I can never catch a break haha. **

**Hope you enjoy :)**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"Draw something cool."

"I'm running out of things to draw; I've taken up more than half of your cast already."

I shrugged. "You're creative. Think of something."

It had been two weeks since I had broken my ankle tripping over Maci's toy, and I gotta tell you, getting around was not a piece of cake. Austin would carry me up and down the stairs, even when I insisted on hopping. I think he was just nervous that I would break my other ankle. Wouldn't put it past myself to do just that. He was being a very good doctor, and he was a big help with Maci.

The wheelchair was helpful because I could carry Maci around easier, and I could use my hands for something useful instead of having to crutch around constantly.

"There, I'm done." Austin capped the marker he was using to draw on my cast and inspected his art. "I think that looks radical."

"Radical?" I giggled.

He grinned. "Yeah! Look at it."

He had drawn a big fancy treble clef and woven his name through it, right next to Maci's scribble that was her signature.

"Looks sweet," I approved. "Wanna paint my toes now?"

"Ha, no." He got up from his spot on our bedroom floor. "I have to start supper."

"Oooh, what are you making?" I said.

"Just for my favorite cripple, I'll make lasagna. With pickles on the side."

"You rock," I grinned. "Except if you call me cripple one more time, I'll boot you with this cast."

"You aren't booting me with anything, especially with that bad ankle. You'll make it worse," Austin replied.

"Then you better sleep with one eye open."

He pouted. "I can't sleep with one eye open."

I just shook my head. "Come on, let's go before we wake up Maci. She's having a terrible day and I'd really rather not have to deal with her at the moment."

I hauled myself from the bed but Austin stopped me when I went to hop. "No way, I'll carry you down."

I sighed. "Austin, I can hop down. Or slide down on my ass."

He shook his head. "You might slip and fall."

"Being extra cautious now, are we?" I said with a raised eyebrow.

"Exactly." He bent and scooped me up, heading out the door.

"I feel like a child," I muttered.

"Suck it up."

I scoffed. "Like I have a choice because you're going to keep doing it no matter what I say."

"Awe, you know me so well."

"I know you better than anyone," I said.

"True enough." When we got to the kitchen, he put me down carefully on one foot and I slid into my wheelchair.

"So what's the plan for tonight?" I asked as I wheeled over to the table.

Austin shrugged as he started taking stuff out for the lasagna. "Dez wanted to go out, but he ended up getting sick so I guess that's not happening anymore."

"How did he get sick?"

My boyfriend started laughing. "He made Trish mad a couple days ago and she didn't talk to or see him until yesterday. He said she just grabbed him and they started making out for some reason; I guess she didn't tell him she was really sick."

I shook my head. "The things that girl comes up with for revenge. It's a miracle Dez is still alive."

"Nah, Trish would never intentionally harm Dez." Austin paused. "I think."

"Well since you're not doing anything, want to watch movies?"

"Sure. What do you want to watch?"

"Pitch Perfect?"

"Oh my god, yes. I love that movie," Austin exclaimed.

"Clearly, since you watch it every weekend."

"It never gets old."

"That is true," I nodded. "Remember when you first met Rebel Wilson at the MTV Movie Awards?"

"How can I forget? She basically attacked me in a bear hug and told me how much she loved my music. And said some other dirty things," he told me. "I would rather not repeat them."

I laughed. "She means well. She's hilarious."

"It was an awesome experience," Austin agreed.

Pancakes trotted into the kitchen at that moment from the hallway and came over to me. "Hey girl." I scratched behind her ears. "Do I want to know what you were doing at the other end of the house?"

She wagged her tail at me before licking up my face, making me laugh. Sitting down in the wheelchair, I was almost her height when she was sitting down. She was a big dog in general, and she wasn't even two yet.

I gave her one last pat before she went over to Austin and sat obediently by the counter, staring up at him.

He glanced down at her while he preparing the veggies. "Staring at me like a suck up isn't going to get you food, Pancakes."

She let out a cross between a whimper and a bark. I don't even know how to explain it, but she did it whenever she wanted something and wasn't getting it. I'm telling you, she's a spoiled dog.

"Pancakes, no," Austin said.

She kept staring at him and scooching closer before he finally sighed and dropped a carrot down to her. "You're one spoiled dog, you know that?"

Pancakes was too busy happily munching on the carrot to notice that her "master" was chastising her.

"It's _you_ who spoils her," I pointed out as I wheeled past him to the fridge to grab a bottle of water.

"It's not my fault she always gives me these big puppy dog eyes!"

"Kind of like the ones you give me when you want me to say yes to something?" I said with a raised eyebrow.

"Exactly."

I grinned before taking a sip of water.

"Oh, Elle Meadows called earlier."

The water that had just entered my mouth shot out like a geyser. "What?" I spluttered.

"Damn, now I have to clean that up," Austin whined.

"Why didn't you say something earlier?" I cried.

"I forgot," he shrugged. "She just said to tell you that the music video was in the editing stage and she'll call a couple of days before it's premiere."

"Try and remember to tell me these things, Austin."

"I do try. But that's the key word: _TRY_."

I shook my head and set the water bottle on my lap. "I'm going to read in the living room."

"Yep."

I wheeled through the kitchen door but hit the hallway wall. "Ow!"

Austin peeked his head through with a look of concern before he saw my state. He was trying not to laugh. "Again? That's the third time in two days."

"Wheeling this thing around is harder than it looks," I snapped.

"For someone as uncoordinated as you, yeah."

I whipped my water bottle at him, but he dodged it. It sailed back into the kitchen. "Your violent streak is showing."

"Go make supper."

"Are Aunt Flow and Uncle Tom visiting you this month?"

"Go away, Austin!"

"Alright, alright, I'm going."

I backed up and finally made it to the living room where my book was sitting on the coffee table. I hauled myself out of the wheelchair and flopped onto the couch.

As soon as I opened it, I heard Maci start crying and I groaned. "Austin, can you get her please?"

"Just a second," he called back.

"You don't want to make her madder than she already is."

"I know, Als, but I've got my hands full, I can't do two things at once!" I heard a pan drop and Austin let out a string of curses.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. I felt bad for him. He had to do basically everything now. I tried to help as much as I could, but it was difficult with a bad ankle.

"I'm coming, Mace," Austin yelled as he passed the doorway to the living room and headed upstairs.

A few minutes later he came back down and walked in carrying her whimpering form.

"Hey, sweetie," I cooed as he handed her to me. "You just aren't having a good day, are you?"

She rubbed her watery eyes and started crying again, burying her face in my neck. I looked up at Austin. "I'll just sit here until she falls back asleep."

"Suit yourself. I'll finish supper." He walked out, but came back shortly after with a bottle. "This might help. She's clearly not going to eat anything."

"Thanks," I said gratefully as I took it from him.

It took a while, but after two kicks to the ribs, a hit to the face and neck, a full bottle, and a screaming fit later, Maci finally fell asleep.

"Supper's re-" Austin stopped when he came in and saw Maci asleep in my arms. He came over and gently took her. He glanced at my face. "What's with the red mark?"

"Maci hit me."

"Ouch." He bent to kiss her forehead softly. "Your mom is already hurt, I don't think you need to be adding to it," he whispered to her as he carried her back to bed.

I got back in my wheelchair and wheeled to the kitchen to wait. He came back down a minute later and sat across from me at the table.

"It smells great," I smiled. "And you even made a face out of pickles for me. You're a gem."

Austin grinned. "I figured you would like it."

We ate and made small talk, with Pancakes getting bits of scraps. Thats what happens when you spoil a pet. Well, that's what happens when Austin* spoils a pet.

After we cleaned up and loaded the dishwasher, I turned to my boyfriend. "Can you help me in the bath?"

He grinned. "Duh."

"Don't be sick," I said as I gave him a shove.

"Who said I'm being sick?"

"Your tone insinuated it."

He rolled his eyes and carried me up the stairs to the bathroom. He set me down and I stood putting pressure on one foot while I pulled my top off.

"Damn, I forgot a bag for your cast. I'll be right back." He left me to finish undressing and I wrapped myself in a towel before turning the water on. I sat on the edge with my good leg in the filling tub and waited for him to return.

He came back and I stuck my other leg out so he could wrap my cast in the plastic to prevent it from getting wet.

"There." Austin stood up and yawned.

I looked at him. "I can manage this myself, you should go rest. You look exhausted."

He scoffed. "And leave you alone in here so you can slip and break something else? Yeah, I don't think so. Come on, get in."

I rolled my eyes and slowly sat down in the warm water. "You're too paranoid. I won't slip, I'm sitting down."

"Naked, might I add," Austin smirked.

I reached over and punched the now laughing blonde. "Grow up!"

"You might slip, Als. I just want to make sure you're safe, and being in a slippery tub in a bathroom alone with a broken ankle is not my definition of safe. It's not _anybody's_ definition of safe."

"Okay, okay, fine. You win." I held my hands over my eyes. "Can you pour water on my head?"

Austin grabbed a bucket and filled it with water before dumping it on me, causing me to shriek.

I grabbed my long drenched hair and moved it out of my eyes so I could glare at my boyfriend. "You could have done that I bit gentler."

"Awe, you're okay," Austin said.

I sighed. "Will you just pass me the shampoo?"

"Why don't I just shampoo your hair like last time?"

"Because you got it in my eyes last time!"

"Hey, that was an accident. You moved your head."

"Yeah, because you were about to drip shampoo down my forehead!"

Austin grabbed the shampoo and handed it to me. "Here."

"Thank you," I said as I took it and squirted some in my palm and started lathering it. "Quit staring at me."

"Can't help it. You are way too attractive. Especially naked."

"You've seen it all before," I smirked.

"Doesn't mean I don't like it any less," Austin replied.

I rolled my eyes."Okay, go."

He dumped water on my head again a couple times to wash out the shampoo before I repeated the cycle with conditoner.

When I finished, Austin helped me out before handing me a towel.

"You can go downstairs and get the movie ready while I change," I told him as I scrunched my hair.

"But I need to carry you downstairs."

"No, you don't. I'll slide down, Austin, it's fine."

"But-"

"Austin!"

He sighed and turned to go out the door, grumbling as he went. He threw out a "Be damn careful, Ally!" before I heard him walk downstairs.

I hopped to the bedroom and grabbed black sleep shorts and one of Austin's t-shirts before slipping them on and brushing out my hair.

It took me a minute to get down the staircase considering how big it was, it being grand and all, and the fact that I was sliding down on my butt, but I managed to get to the bottom without injuring myself. Again.

Austin left my wheelchair at the bottom for me so I sat down in it and wheeled myself to the living room. He was most likely in the kitchen making popcorn, so I just sat on the couch and wrapped myself in a blanket while I waited for him.

Sure enough, he came back with a big bowl of buttery popcorn, just the way we liked it.

"You saint," I said as he sat down beside me. I reached over and grabbed a handful before lying against his side in my blanket. He slid an arm around me. I was quite cozy.

"You can't watch a movie without popcorn," Austin smiled. "How's the ankle?"

"Broken."

"No, really?" He said. "I meant, how does it _feel?_"

I laughed. "I'm just teasing you. It feels fine, actually."

"Positive?"

"Yes, Austin, I'm positive."

"Just making sure you're not in pain or anything," he told me as he pressed play for the movie. "It was bad enough seeing you in it when we were at the hospital."

I leaned my forehead against his bicep. "I know. Thank you for looking after me, and everything else."

He kissed my head. "You know I'd do anything for you, Als."

Pancakes trailed in a few minutes into the movie and lied down at our feet. I reached over and scratched her behind the ears. "Hey girl."

"Shh!" Austin whispered.

"Sorry," I mumbled.

Him and his movies. Sheesh.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you liked it! Review it up :) Some of you have been asking if I'm going to be making this like a trilogy and I haven't thought about it really. I just want to get this one done and then go from there :) But I'm glad you guys love this story, it's alot of fun to write! Thank you for reviewing and reading and making me so happy! :D Love you all!**

**Follow me on instagram: r5joellemariee**

**R5 account on instagram: r5giirl**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**Peace out, guys! MUAH! xo**


	17. Halloween Decorations

**A/N: I've been sick for a few days so I've had time to update instead of being at school haha. Thanks for the love and support everybody, you all rock! **

**Guys, I met R5 this past Friday at their concert. because I had VIP and all. ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. They are all total sweethearts, and Rocky and Ross asked me for hugs. THEY ASKED ME. Of course I gave them one, and then we all did a big group hug and it was just so awesome. They were all so nice, asking me how I was and everything, like, seriously, take me back! :D**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"No, Austin, move it more to the left…. that's too much. Oh, come on, bats obviously don't hang sideways. Wait- a little- there! Leave it!"

Austin came down from the ladder and glared at me. "Only took you ten minutes to decide how you wanted it."

"You know me, I'm a perfectionist," I replied.

It was about a week before Halloween and since Austin had no rehearsal for his upcoming tour that day, we were hanging up decorations. Well, Austin was; I was barking orders like a drill sergeant. We were doing the outside ones at the moment.

He looked up at the string of black bats hanging across the front doorway. "Clearly. Now what?"

"The ghosts can go around the window, and when you're done that, the witch can go on the tree by the side of the house." I wheeled to the box of decorations and pulled out a couple of Styrofoam headstones. "I'll make the graveyard."

"Awe, come on, why can't I do that?" Austin whined.

"Because I can't reach the windows and tree in this thing," I snapped. "You can come help later. Maci, can you bring mommy that box?"

"Me a big girl!" she said happily as she walked over and followed me to the garden, pushing the box in front of her.

"Thanks, sweetie," I said as I thought about how to set it up. I stuck one of the gravestones in and shuffled around in the box.

"Ally?"

I glanced up at the new voice and saw Jesse walking down the sidewalk in my direction with Blaze. Pancakes, who had been lying in the yard, jumped up and bounded over to Blaze. Jesse unhooked Blaze's leash and the two giant dogs played in the yard.

"Jesse? What are you doing here?" I asked. I glanced over at Austin and saw he was looking over at us from his spot up on the ladder. His expression was unreadable.

"I was just out for a walk with Blaze. I didn't know you lived here." He looked at my wheelchair. "Um, what exactly happened to you?"

"Tripped over one of Maci's toys and broke my ankle," I said. "I've got a couple more weeks in this cast."

"Damn, that sucks." He glanced up at Austin and gave a hesitant wave. "You must be Austin," he called.

"And you must be Jesse," Austin replied somewhat coolly.

"Austin!" I snapped.

He sighed and came down from the ladder. "Sorry." He walked over to us and stuck out his hand to Jesse. "This was bound to happen sooner or later. I would've preferred later."

"Oh my god," I said, running my hands over my face. "I'm sorry, Jesse, Austin isn't usually like this. Right, Austin?" I added through gritted teeth.

Austin shrugged and I elbowed him hard enough to make him wheeze "Oomph!"

Jesse shook Austin's hand. "Nice to finally meet you. Look, Austin, about that whole situation with Ally and me-"

Austin cut him off. "Don't worry about it, dude. I was mad at first but- Actually, that's an understatement. I wanted to skewer you with a knife. But it's cool now."

"Are you sure?" Jesse asked nervously. "Because I honestly didn't mean to cause any grief between the two of you, I feel really awful."

"It's fine, Ally and I are great." I knew Austin was being sincere and wanted to be civil, but he still gave Jesse a look that said, _don't even try and steal my girl because you'll never see sunlight again._

"Well!" I interrupted, eager to change the subject. "Now that that's out of the way, how have things been with Quinn?"

"We've only hung out a couple of times since I last saw you."

I stared at him. "That's _it_?"

"She's been busy all the other times I've asked her," Jesse shrugged.

"Huh. Well-" I caught Maci moving out of the corner of my eye. "Mace, get out of the box!"

"I've got her," Austin sighed before jogging over. "And just what do you think you're doing, missy?" He asked, scooping Maci out of the box, causing her to shriek with laughter. "Huh? What were you doing in there?" Austin teased, attacking her with kisses which made her laugh even more.

Jesse grinned at the sight. "Anybody can tell he's an amazing father."

"He is," I smiled as Austin came over carrying Maci.

"Oh, right, you haven't met Maci yet," I said to Jesse.

"Nope," he shook his head. "She's a cutie though."

"Maci, can you say hi to Jesse?" I asked her nicely.

She stared at him with her big brown eyes before turning and burying her head in Austin's neck, hands curled in his hair.

"She's shy," Austin explained, rubbing her back. "Complete opposite of Sheridan."

"Give her time," I said to Jesse. "But how have things been with you?"

"Pretty good. Just been busy with school and work."

"That's a nice dog you have," Austin spoke up. "Almost identical to Pancakes."

Jesse chuckled. "That's Blaze. He's a chocolate lab." Blaze trotted over. "Speak of the devil…" Jesse pat his back. "Hey bud, have fun with Pancakes?"

Maci let out a frustrated squeak from Austin's arms, and I turned to see her reaching out towards Blaze. Austin bent down to the dog so Maci could reach and she immediately started running her hands down Blaze's head. Austin scratched Blaze behind the ears.

I smiled as the two fawned over the lab. "These two loves dogs."

"I see that," Jesse laughed. "So Austin, how's work going for you?"

Austin seemed surprised that Jesse asked, pleasantly, of course, and stood up again, leaving Maci with Blaze on the ground. "It's great. I've got a tour coming up."

"Oh, right, I heard about that. Big one, I assume?"

My boyfriend nodded. "North America."

Jesse whistled. "Jeez. Sounds amazing, but I don't know if I could do that."

"It's tiring, but I love it," Austin replied.

"That's the best part then. I better get going, though, I've got somebody coming to the house to look over renovation plans." He hooked Blaze back up to his leash.

I nodded. "It was nice seeing you again, Jesse."

"You, too, Ally. Hope your ankle gets better quick. And it was nice meeting you, Austin. Again, I'm really sorry."

"Don't worry about it, we're cool, man." Austin held out his hand and Jesse shook it.

"Alright, I'll see you guys around."

"Bye!" Maci piped from the ground.

Jessie smiled and waved down at her. "Bye, Maci!" He gave us one last wave and continued on his way.

When he turned the corner of the street, I turned to Austin. "Well?"

He sighed and picked Maci back up, setting her on my lap before wheeling me back up the driveway. "He seems like a good guy."

"And?"

"And I'm sorry for being rude to him earlier."

"And?"

Austin looked confused. "And I'm sorry I ate the rest of the pickles this morning?"

"You what?" I shrieked.

"Nevermind," Austin said quickly.

I glared at him. "That's wasn't the 'and' I was looking for."

"And I'm sorry I doubted you."

"Thank you," I smiled.

He moved in front of me and bent to kiss me. "No problem. Maybe we'll be BFF's!"

"Oh my god, never say that again. You sound like Dez."

Austin chuckled and grabbed the rest of the decorations before heading back over to the ladder. We spent another half hour hanging up decorations before heading back in to do the inside ones. Pancakes went to sleep in her kennel. The sun always tired her out.

"Alright, here are the banners." I handed them to Austin. "Can you put Maci in her jumper?"

He took Maci from my lap and set her in her jumper before taking the banners again. "Where do you want them?"

"Surprise me."

"Wow, you're letting me put them wherever I want?" Austin asked excitedly.

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, go crazy."

"Woo!" Austin exclaimed as he ran out of the room, banners flying behind him. I just shook my head and started placing things around the kitchen and dining room. As I rummaged through the box for more, I felt a picture frame. Confused, I pulled it out. When I saw what it was, I smiled.

It was a picture of Austin, Dez, Trish, and I on Halloween back when we were sixteen, after Austin and I had finished performing "Don't Look Down."

"I thought we lost this picture," I said to myself. "Hey, Austin!"

He came into the kitchen a minute later. "What?"

I held up the picture. "Look what I just found in the bottom of the box."

He came closer so he could see it better and grinned. "Awe man, that's an old picture."

"I can't believe this was from four years ago already," I commented as we looked at it. "It feels like yesterday."

"We've come a long way," Austin said. He tilted his head. "I think I've grown at least six inches since then."

"I don't think I've grown at all."

"Maybe an inch or two," Austin smirked.

"Oh, shut up, I'm a tiny person!" I exclaimed.

"I'm just teasing you, Als. Here, I'm hanging that up." I handed it to him and he found a place on the wall before replacing a cheesy painting with the picture.

"Looks awesome," I smiled. "Hey, where did you put the banners?"

"Places," Austin muttered.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Austin. Where did you put the banners?"

"Well, I put one in our room because, I mean, it's got zombies on it."

"And you want zombies to stare down at you when you sleep?" I exclaimed.

"Um, yeah. Zombies are cool."

I just shook my head. "Don't bother telling me where the other ones are. I'm sure I'll find them in random places."

"Ha, yeah." Austin handed Maci her toy monkey. "When you become a teenager, you're going to love zombies as much as your dad, right?"

Maci smiled and nodded. "Perfect. Better than you loving boys."

"Oh, I can't wait until that day comes," I said happily. "You'll be entertaining."

"Don't count on it," Austin said. "I'll cut them." He lifted Maci out of her jumper so she could crawl around.

"Austin! My dad wasn't even bad when I started becoming interested in boys."

"Yeah, well, the only guys you were ever interested in were Dallas and I. And it didn't go anywhere with Dallas, and let's be honest, your dad loves me."

"I-" I stopped. "Yeah, that's true, he does love you."

"Exactly."

"You know it's going to happen eventually, Austin, so I would get used to it. It's practically inevitable," I said.

My boyfriend slapped his hands over his ears. "If I don't hear it, it's not true! If I don't hear it, it's not true! If I don't hear it, it's not true!" he yelled and I immediately remembered him doing that when he thought I liked him; I almost started laughing.

I grabbed my crutches from where they were leaning on the wall and pushed myself out of the chair. I crutched up to him. "Are we really going to repeat that?" I smirked.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

I reached up and pecked his cheek. "No worries." I crutched over to the fridge and pulled out an apple. "Besides, that's really all _you _have to be majorly focused on. I'll have to deal with makeup, piercings, clothes, hair, boys, and-"

"Don't!" he cut me off. "Don't say the P-word!"

"Okay, fine. _Feminine issues,_" I emphasized. "Better?"

"Much."

I shook my head. "Can you just finish hanging up the decorations I can't reach?"

"Yeah," Austin said as he grabbed the box. "Oh, by the way, I totally ate all the pickles this morning."

"I'm gonna kill you!" I shouted.

"Good luck catching me!" He laughed as he ran out of the room. Maci followed him.

"That guy, I swear," I muttered angrily as I crutched after him. "I'll get him eventually." Louder, so he could hear, I yelled, "You can run, but you can't hide, Austin! Who's the queen at hide and seek?"

I heard him yell, "Damn it!"

"Exactly!"

* * *

**A/N: Austin finally met Jesse! Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter :) Update will be as soon as I can.**

**Review it up! **

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? _joelleR5__**

**my two instagrams: r5 account- _r5giirl_**

**personal account- _r5joellemariee_**

**follow me guys if you want a taste of my life! Love you all! :)**


	18. Party Planning

**A/N: APOLOGIZES FOR NOT UPDATING IN ALMOST A MONTH! You guys have no idea how freaking busy I've been and it's only getting crazier with exams coming up :/ I am really sorry, I didn't mean for you guys to have to wait that long! Ahh, I feel so bad!**

**Here's the next chapter, it's kind of a filler and somebody reviewed recently and said my stories were way too fluffy and full of filler chapters. My self esteem kinda went down. What do you guys think about my stories, honest opinions? Just tell me cause if I'm boring you guys, then you need to let me know!**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"Austin, wake up," I said as I sat up in bed and stretched.

"Mmmmm," he groaned in response.

"It's-" I paused and checked the time on the bedside clock. I shrieked. "Noon! I have to be at Quinn's in fifteen minutes!"

"For what?" Austin mumbled as I grabbed my crutches and went as quickly as I could over to the closet.

"I'm helping her decorate for her Halloween party. I told you that already."

"Cut me some slack, I'm half dead right now." He yawned and sat up, scratching his bare chest and then running his hand through his hair.

"I can't believe I woke up so late, I slept through the alarm!" I exclaimed as I threw on clean undergarments. I chose a red t-shirt and jean shorts before slipping them on and throwing my hair in a bun. "Why was I so tired?"

"Probably from all that fun we had last night," Austin smirked, wiggling his eyebrows.

"You're sick."

"You love it," he said before swinging his legs over and standing up. "How long are you going to be gone?"

"I don't know, a few hours at least," I said as I washed my face in the bathroom. He followed me into Maci's room, who was fast asleep in her crib. I bent to kiss her head. "Have fun with daddy today, baby. I love you." I went back to our room and grabbed my phone and purse. "I'm out."

"I'll carry you down the stairs, it'll be easier," Austin said.

Under any other circumstances I would have argued, but I was in a rush so I relented and climbed onto his back, him carrying my crutches in one hand.

"If you drop me, so help me God-"

"Relax, I won't," Austin snapped. "When have I ever dropped you?"

"Yesterday evening!"

"Oh, right."

When we got to the bottom, I slid off and took my crutches from him. "Don't forget to feed Pancakes."

"I won't, now go," he said, kissing my head. "I'll see you later."

"Bye!" I waved before leaving through the door that connected the garage to the house. I hobbled to my car and climbed in, throwing the crutches in the back. I had a week left in the cast and then I had a walking boot for a couple more weeks, which wasn't nearly as bad as the crutches and wheelchair, but it still wouldn't be fun.

"I have five minutes, oh my god, I'm going to be so late, oh my god," I repeated to myself as I turned onto the main road that took you further into Miami. "Quinn's going to kill me!"

My phone rang and I pushed the button on my dashboard for hands-free. "Hello?"

"Hey, Ally."

"Quinn! Oh, I'm so glad you called. I'm going to be a little late, but I just left my house a couple minutes ago."

"Don't worry about it, Ally. I was just calling to ask you if you could pick up some black and orange streamers from Dollarama? I thought I had more than I actually do."

"Yeah, I can do that. Just one pack?"

"Two, please."

"Sounds good."

"Thanks, Ally, I'll see you in a bit!"

"Later, girl!" I pressed the button again to hang up and continued to drive. It took me fifteen minutes to get to a Dollarama that was really only a few minutes away from our place, but the traffic was insane because it was around everybody's lunch break.

I crutched inside and went to the decoration section. As I was looking, I heard a voice. "Ally?"

I glanced up and saw a girl that looked familiar. She was dressed casually in jeans and a green oversized sweater, her hair in a side braid. "Cassidy?"

She laughed and hugged me. "Yeah! How are you, I haven't seen you in so long!"

I hugged her back. "I'm good! How are you?"

"I'm good, thanks," she smiled. "I actually moved back to Miami recently."

"Is everything okay?" I asked.

"Oh yeah, everything is fine," she said quickly. "I just missed home, that's all. I'm still in my band, though, we're just not doing work right now."

"Oh," I nodded, understanding now. "Well, it's good to see you again."

"You, too. Shopping for Halloween?"

"Yeah, I'm picking up some decorations for my friend. I'm helping her decorate her house today."

"Cool! I love Halloween," Cassidy smiled. "What did you do to your ankle?"

"Um, I tripped over my daughter's toy."

Cassidy hesitated. "Yeah, I heard you and Austin had a baby."

"We had a little girl last year in March. It wasn't planned," I admitted.

"How is she?"

"She's really good," I smiled. "It's been hard, but I'm glad we kept her. She's our whole world."

Cassidy grinned. "You seem happy, Ally. I'm glad for you guys."

"Thanks, Cassidy," I said as I hugged her. "I really have to go though, I'm already running late, but it was nice talking to you!"

"You too! Maybe we can hang out sometime?"

"Sure," I smiled. I gave her my number. "Call me. You can even meet Maci."

"That's a pretty name," Cassidy said. "Sounds good, I'll definitely do that."

"See you around," I smiled as I grabbed the streamers and crutched to the register.

After I paid and got back to my vehicle, I went as fast as I could to Quinn's. I was really surprised to see Cassidy. The last time I saw her was when Austin and I had went to Melody's Diner last year, a couple weeks before I got pregnant with Maci. It was nice to see her though, I had always liked her. She was a sweet girl.

When I finally got to Quinn's, I pulled into her driveway and got out, grabbing my crutches and the streamers, and heading up to the front door. She opened it before I had a chance to ring the doorbell or knock.

"Hey! Long time no see," she laughed as she hugged me. It was true, I hadn't seen her in a while, but she was a gorgeous as ever. Her long bleached hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she was wearing jean shorts with a blue tank top, her favourite biker boots on her feet. "How's the ankle?"

"It's getting better. I've got a week left with the cast and then I have to wear a walking boot for a couple weeks," I told her as we made our way into the main part of the house.

"Damn, that sucks," Quinn said. "Want something to drink before we get started?"

"Water is fine," I told her. "Where's Sher?"

"Jace and Leah took her out for the day," she replied, handing me a glass. "It's easier to decorate without her running around."

"True," I said then grinned. "So, how are things with Jesse?"

Quinn choked on her water. "W-what?"

"You heard me. What's going on with you two?"

She blushed. "Nothing, really. We haven't hung out that much since I met him."

"But you like him."

"I never said-"

"Oh, come on, Quinn, I can see it in your eyes. You totally like him."

She struggled to think of something to say before she sighed. "Okay, fine, yes, I do like Jesse. But I don't think he would ever go for me."

"What? Why not? You're a total knockout!"

She gave me a pointed look. "Well, thanks, but I also have a two year old daughter, and most guys don't go for girls of the punk look either." She gestured to her pierced nose where a ring went through one side, and then her ears, where piercings went all the way up on both, and a bar went through the top of one ear.

"Quinn, just because you have lots of piercings and a daughter doesn't mean he won't date you."

"I'm not done." She lifted up her shirt to reveal a belly button ring, and then turned around and lifted up her ponytail, where a tattoo of a flower rested on the back of her neck.

"I didn't know you had a tattoo," I said.

"I got it last year."

"Well, look on the bright side. At least it's not a picture of something creepy, like a snake eating someone's head."

She looked at me and laughed. "Oh, Ally, you never fail to amuse me."

"I try," I teased. "But seriously, Jesse likes you."

"Really?" She perked up.

I nodded. "Really."

"Hmm. Well, maybe things will go somewhere then," Quinn smiled. "But enough about me. Let's get decorating!"

After twenty minutes of hanging up streamers, I grabbed a paper ghost. "Where do you want this?"

She inspected it. "I think it would look good on the wall over there. That's where I'll have the punch and everything."

"Sounds like this is going to be quite the party," I commented as I grabbed the tape.

"It's like a thing we have every year," She explained. "Some of my friends come over, and my family, aunts, uncles, some of Jace's friends, Leah's friends, and then you guys. Your parents and Austin's parents are more than welcome to come as well, Trish and Dez, too."

I nodded. "Thanks. I'll definitely ask them."

After we finished decorating most of the house, we sat down to rest. "That took forever," Quinn said.

"You should have came to help decorate our house," I laughed. "It took us four hours to do the inside and outside."

"Your house is humongous, though," Quinn pointed out.

"Valid point, but that's not always a good things. I almost lost Maci in it once."

Quinn started laughing. "What?"

"I did!" I laughed. "But I found her, so it's all good."

"Oh my god, Ally, I never would have thought you would lost Maci. You're you!"

"I know, I would have thought it would be Austin to do it first."

"No kidding!" Quinn exclaimed before we both burst into a fit of giggles. It was fun hanging out with Quinn again, since I hadn't done it in so long. This Halloween party was going to be awesome!

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed :) it was kind of boring, but I just wanted to update for you guys in the little spare time that I have. Thanks for sticking with me, you guys, you're all so amazing and I love you all so much xx Totally off topic, but do you guys know of Jamie's World on Facebook? She's on Youtube too? She is absolutely HILARIOUS and she's from New Zealand, you guys should go check out her videos, I swear they explain my life in every single one of them! The ones on Facebook are her best ones, and she uploads basically daily :)**

**Joelle xx**

**Instagram accounts... personal is: joelle_mcmillan**

**R5 account is: r5giirl**


	19. Costume Shopping

**A/N: You guys will love me when I tell you that I'm done school now for the summer holidays and I have time to write. YAY! No more studying, no more fastball, no more homework, all done! :) I apologize again for the wait, I just wrote my exam yesterday and it was easy. I guess that's what studying for weeks in advance does haha.**

**Enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A, but I own Maci.**

* * *

**Ally POV**

"Hey Ally, how about these?" Austin called from somewhere close in the store. I looked around the rack I was skimming through to see him a few racks away, Maci sitting in the stroller beside him. He was holding up two costumes. One was Jasmine, the other was Aladdin. "Maci could be like, the genie or something!" Austin said excitedly.

"That Jasmine costume is kinda slutty, don't you think?" I hesitated as I crutched over to them.

"Are you really going to ask me that question?" Austin said. "I'll reply no to everything."

"Ha ha," I said as I rolled my eyes. I pulled at the fabric. "Can we just try and find something else?"

Austin sighed. "Fine. But Maci was really looking forward to wearing a genie costume."

"I'm sure she was," I giggled. I went back to skim through the rack I was at before. A few minutes later, I found something. "Oh my god, Austin, what about these?"

I held up an Ariel and Prince Eric costume. "Maci can be Melody!"

"Ha, no." Austin said. "Besides, how are you going to do the tail?"

"It has a long green skirt that looks like a tail."

"Do you know how annoying it's going to be shuffling in that tight thing all night?" Austin said.

"It's not that tight," I protested.

"Mommy, why is Austin Moon shopping in the Disney section?" some random little girl said. Her mom shushed her and they hurried away.

I started laughing and Austin playfully shoved me. "Thanks for defending me."

"Oh, come on, she looked like she was four!"

"Well, I think we should go with the Jasmine and Aladdin idea," my boyfriend said.

"Ariel and Eric."

"You have the hair for Jasmine!"

"How?" I challenged.

Austin pretended to be stumped. "Um, let's see. Oh yeah. It's really long, thick, and brown!"

"My hair isn't that long. And it's not all brown!"

"Ally, it's as long as Kylie Jenner's. And that's pretty much at your belly button. And okay, it's blonde as you move down, but it's still better than the Ariel hair. You're not a redhead."

"It comes with a w-"

"Ally, can we please just go with me on this one!" Austin interrupted, exasperated.

I sighed. "Okay, fine, I'll wear the Jasmine costume."

"Yes! Don't worry, you'll look hot in it," Austin grinned as he put the costumes on top of the stroller and pushed Maci towards the register, me trailing behind.

"I better," I commented. I grabbed a bag of chocolate, two magazines, three lip glosses and two nail polish bottles and tossed them onto the conveyor belt. "These are for making me wear it."

Austin rolled his eyes and got out his credit card as the lady at the till rang us up. When we finished paying, we heading to the food court to eat. As usual, we got shameful looks from parents, fanatic ones from teenage girls (Well, Austin did), and some people wanting autographs and pictures. Some people also wanted to see Maci. We couldn't go anywhere anymore without any of that, but we didn't mind. We were used to it.

"What time are we going to Quinn's tonight?" Austin asked as we sat down. I sat Maci in one of the highchairs provided in the food court and handed her some crackers.

"Around six, that's when everyone else is going. Maci needs to have a nap first before she goes."

"Are Dez and Trish going?"

"Yeah, you didn't know?"

"Well, truthfully, I haven't hung out with Dez in a while," Austin admitted.

"What do you mean? You guys are like brothers!"

"I know, it's just, I haven't had lots of free time. I've been busy rehearsing for my tour almost every day and I've been helping you around the house with your ankle for the past five weeks, plus taking care of Maci adds to it. But he understands, he's been busy with helping his parents with renovations on the house anyway."

"It kind of makes you think, doesn't it?" I said as I bit a fry.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we're all 21 now. You and I have a baby together. It's scary to think we all might drift apart."

"Ally, that'll never happen," Austin said.

"You said it yourself, Austin, you haven't talked to Dez in weeks!"

"We're both just busy with our lives. That doesn't mean we aren't going to stop being friends. Dez and I have been best friends since we were in diapers, same with you and Trish. I promise you, babe, we'll always be Team Austin, no matter what."

I sighed and grabbed another fry. "I hope so."

"I know so. Now stop worrying, you'll get wrinkles."

"And that's a bad thing?" I said, raising my eyebrow.

"When you're 21…yeah."

"Yeah, I know, I'll stop," I said.

"More cwackers!"

"More crackers?" Austin asked as he shook some onto the tray of Maci's highchair. "There you go, sweetie."

"Yay, daddy!" she shrieked before snagging them and sucking on them. After we all finished eating, we went back out to the vehicle. As soon as we got in, my phone rang. "Who would that be?" I wondered aloud as I rummaged through my purse and pulled it out. "Hello?"

"Ally, thank god you picked up!"

"Quinn? Are you okay?" Austin was looking at me now from the driver's seat, and I gave him an I-have-no-clue look.

"I can't find Sheridan!"

I paused. "What do you mean, you can't find Sheridan?" Austin's eyes widened and he gestured to give him the phone. I held up a finger.

"I mean exactly that! I was setting up for the party tonight when I turned my back on her for a second, and now she's gone! I've looked everywhere."

"Okay, Quinn, just take a deep breath. Austin wants to talk to you, alright? Everything's going to be fine." I handed the phone to Austin.

"Quinn?" Austin asked. "Yeah, it's me. Are you sure you've checked everywhere? She has to be somewhere in the house, just relax. Are there any places she loves to be?" He paused, and I could hear muffled shrieking on the other end. "Quinn, you just need to calm down, take a deep breath and think. Okay, check there. Just a second." Austin pulled my phone away from his ear. "She's checking the basement."

"The basement?" I asked, confused. "Sheridan can't get down those stairs."

"Never know with babies," Austin said. "Here, Quinn, I'm going to put you on speaker. Okay, Ally's here now, too. And Maci," he added, just so she would know not to swear, because from the way she was panicking, she most definitely would have done that.

"I checked the basement, she's not here," Quinn said before bursting into tears.

"Honey, she's in the house. Do you want us to come down there?"

"No, no, I live on the other side of the city, it's out of your way, don't worry about it."

I paused. "Wait, the laundry room."

"This no time to be thinking about doing laundry, Allyson!" Quinn shrieked.

I winced as she used my full name. "No, I meant check the laundry room. I always see on TV shows that babies or little kids are usually in the weirdest places," I told her.

"Well, I'm desperate, so fine." Austin and I looked at each other as we heard her run down the basement stairs to the laundry room. A few seconds later, all we heard was Quinn screaming, "Sheridan! What are you doing in here? How did you get in here? You scared the HELL out of me, don't you EVER do that again, do you hear me young lady?!"

"But mommy, I was playing hide and seek; you were supposed to come find me!"

"Next time tell me you're playing hide and seek before I'm about to call the cops!"

"I take it you found her?" Austin said.

"She was in the dryer," Quinn said into the phone this time.

"How did she get in the dryer?" I asked, astounded.

"I have no flipping clue, but thanks for the suggestion, Ally. A few seconds later and I would have had a heart attack."

"No problem, girl, we're glad you found her. We'll see you tonight!"

"Once my heart is restarted. Bye, thanks again, you guys!"

"Later!" we called before I hung up my phone. "Well, that was eventful."

"No kidding. Thank god she found her," Austin said as he started the vehicle.

"I can't even imagine if that was Maci."

Austin shuddered. "Don't even bring that up, I'm getting mental images."

I turned backwards to see Maci. "Don't ever scare your dad and I like that, okay?"

She nodded, so that was enough for me. "I still have to figure out a way to tie my hair up like Jasmine's for tonight."

"It comes with those blue hair tie things."

"Really?" I asked.

"Well, duh. Otherwise it wouldn't be a Jasmine costume. It would just be a blue genie costume."

"You're quite the expert."

"Disney was my childhood growing up."

"Oh, really," I smiled.

"Really! Cinderella was the best."

"You have got to be kidding me," I laughed.

"I'm being dead serious. Those singing mice made me want to be a singer! It's not like I knew any better, I was like, five."

"I'm sorry I'm laughing, but you have _never _told me that before," I gasped.

"I haven't told anyone that before, I would lose my manhood."

"So you're telling me?"

"Well, yeah, you're my girlfriend, best friend, and the person I trust the most, so of course I'll tell you. But if you tell anyone, you are so dead."

"Oh relax, I won't tell anyone." I started laughing again.

"It's not even that funny!" Austin exclaimed.

"Yes, it is! Cinderella, of all the Disney characters, you pick Cinderella! Why couldn't it have been Simba from The Lion King or something?"

"Oh, I liked Timon and Pumbaa. Simba was cool, too." That only made me laugh harder, and Austin glanced into the rear view mirror. "Your mom is losing it, Maci."

Maci started giggling. "Mommy!"

"See, she agrees," Austin grinned. "Remind me to never tell you anything about my childhood again."

"Like how you're scared of umbrellas?"

"Hey, I'm not anymore! I told you that in confidence!"

I reached over and pat his knee. "Awe, I still love ya."

"Not really sure if the feeling's mutual anymore." Austin mumbled.

"Austin!"

"I'm kidding, Ally, you know I love you. But seriously, if you tell anyone-"

"I _won't_… at least not to many people."

"Ally!"

* * *

**A/N: Filler, yes, I know, but the next update will be TOMORROW. You don't have to wait so long again. I'm going to try to write a bunch of chapters in advance so you guys don't have to wait so long, and I have one done after this one already, which is tomorrow's update, but I promise I'll try to do as many as I can in advance so they are ready for updates! Thank you guys for your patience, I love you all so much! xx**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**INSTAGRAM: r5giirl**


	20. Parent Problems & Parties

**A/N: Update! So, I really love this chapter, and I think you guys will too! It was so fun to write! :)**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A but I own everyone else not associated with it. I don't own the song Are You Happy Now? by Megan and Liz, and I don't own the description of the video, as it is theirs.**

* * *

**Ally POV**

"Hey, guys!" Quinn said as she greeted us at the door. "Wow, you all look awesome!"

"Thanks," I smiled. I had managed to make my hair look like Jasmine's and Austin looked like Aladdin. He had even temporarily dyed his hair black, but it was just for that night. It washed out in the shower. "So do you!"

"Thanks," she laughed. Quinn was dressed as Cat Woman.

"Awe, Mace, you look adorable," she smiled. Maci was wearing a little genie outfit, her hair in a top ponytail. She didn't even throw a fit when I put her in it, surprisingly. She doesn't really like anything that's not pink.

"Sheridan has been waiting for Maci all day," Quinn said as we followed her into the house. Sheridan was dressed as a little fairy and as soon as she saw Maci, she shrieked and ran over. Austin set Maci down and she walked over to play with Sheridan.

"Are Trish and Dez here yet?" I asked. There were already a lot of people at the party.

Quinn nodded. "I saw Dez at the punch bowl, and Trish was talking to your mom, I think."

"Okay, thanks," I said. "I'm just going to go find Trish."

"I'll watch Maci, Austin, you can go find Dez," Quinn said.

"Thanks, Quinn, I won't be long," he promised before hurrying off. I went to find Trish, and sure enough, she was talking with my mom. Trish was a cowgirl and my mom was a witch.

"Hey!" Trish greeted when she saw me. "You look hot, girl!"

"Thanks," I grinned. "Hi, Mom."

"Hello, honey, how are things? We haven't talked in a while."

It was true, I hadn't talked to my parents in a while, but with everything happening lately, it was hard.

"I know, mom, and I'm sorry, I've just been really busy lately with Austin's tour coming up, and the ankle, and Maci-"

"It's fine, honey, don't worry about it," my mom said. "I understand."

"But to answer your question, I'm great. Except for this ankle."

"How much longer do you have the cast?"

"A week, and then I'm in a walking boot for two more weeks," I told them.

"At least it's better than those crutches," Trish said.

"True."

"How cool is this party?" Trish exclaimed.

"It's very cool!" I agreed.

"Oh, I saw Jesse earlier. I think he's dressed as Batman."

I inwardly smiled. That made sense, since Quinn was Cat Woman. I noticed that my mom winced when Trish said Jesse's name.

"Are you okay, Mom?" I asked cautiously.

"Hmm? Oh, yes, I'm fine, honey. I just caught a chill, that's all," she smiled. "Excuse me, girls, but I think I need some more punch." Before we could say anything, she hurried off.

I turned to Trish. "Well, that was weird."

"Tell me about it." She changed the subject. "Anyway, are you excited for your music video premiere tonight?"

"I'm so excited," I admitted. Had I forgotten to tell you guys? Oops. Well, yes, Trish was right. My music video for the Make It Right Foundation was to premiere tonight, and we were all going to watch it on Quinn's giant flat screen TV. I was very excited, as I already said; Austin hadn't stopped talking about it since we found out the airdate.

"It's going to be awesome, I know it," my best friend smiled. "Oh, and back to the Jesse thing. He was looking for you earlier."

"Really?"

"Yeah! He said he had to tell you something."

"Okay, thanks. I guess I'll go find him before I forget."

"I'll see you later!" Trish said. I waved and hurried off to find Jesse. I stopped at the punch bowl, and Austin, Dez, and Jace were standing in front of it, talking.

"Hey, boys," I greeted as I grabbed a glass.

"Hey Ally," Dez and Jace said as Austin said, "Hey, babe."

Jace was dressed as Zorro. "Um, Dez, what are you supposed to be?" I asked tentatively.

"I'm Woody from Toy Story, duh."

"Really?" I asked. He looked nothing like it.

"Well, technically, it's Woody and Buzz Lightyear and those green alien guys all put into one costume," he clarified. "Isn't it fantabulous?"

"It is pretty fantabulous," I said. I looked at Austin and mouthed _fantabulous?_

He shrugged and mouthed back, _it's Dez. _Jace was trying not to laugh.

"Well, glad to see you two are catching up, but I've got to go find Jesse. Apparently he's looking for me."

"I saw him in the kitchen grabbing more snacks," Austin said. "Quinn took Maci and Sheridan into the living room."

"I think Leah is watching the girls now," Jace said. "With a couple of her friends. Quinn went off to do god knows what. Probably fix something that doesn't even need fixing because she's such a perfectionist." He rolled his eyes but I could tell he was proud of his younger sister.

I thanked them and crutched to the kitchen, where I found Jesse pouring snacks into a bowl.

"You were looking for me?" I asked.

He looked up and grinned. "Hey! Wow, you look great!"

"Thanks," I smiled.

"Oh, yes, I was looking for you. Okay, so you know how you told me to figure things out with Quinn?"

"You did and now you guys are officially dating."

"How did you know?"

"Well, assuming since you're dressed as Batman and she's dressed as Cat Woman, I kind of put two and two together," I laughed.

"I guess that's a dead giveaway," he agreed. "But anyway, thanks for pushing me to go for it. I never would have asked her out if it wasn't for you."

"No problem, you guys are cute," I said.

He smiled and then paused, like he had remembered something. "Oh, one more question. Does your mom hate me?"

"W-what?" I asked, shocked.

"Well, she won't look at me."

I was truly puzzled. "I have no clue, Jesse. I'll talk to her; I know for a fact that she doesn't hate you."

"Okay, because I was trying to figure out if I had done something wrong and I couldn't think of anything." He grabbed the bowl of snacks and walked around the counter. "I'll see you back out there, I'm going to find Austin and Dez."

"Bye," I called after him as he left the room. When I went to move through the doorway, my dad ran into me as he was coming around the corner.

"Whoa, there, honey!" he chuckled. "I didn't even see you there."

"Sorry, Dad," I said. "I didn't see you, either."

"No worries, Ally, I should watch where I'm going, especially with that ankle of yours."

I glanced down at the ground and noticed his wallet on the ground that must have fallen out of his pocket when we collided, as well as a picture that had fallen out. My dad didn't notice, he was too busy straightening his tie. I think he was supposed to be James Bond.

I bent down to grab his wallet and the picture, but I froze when I got a better look at the second item.

"Dad?"

"Yeah, honey?"

"Who are these people?" I pointed to the picture. It was a mom and a dad, with a little blonde boy in the middle of them. "I've never seen them before."

"Oh, that's your aunt and uncle and your cousin," my dad said quickly, snatching the picture and wallet back.

"I don't have any boy cousins," I said slowly. He wasn't telling me something. Come to think of it, both of my parents were acting weird tonight.

"Yes, you do. You don't have any _first _boy cousins, but you have three second boy cousins. So technically, this is your great uncle and aunt. Look, honey, I've got to go find your mother, she wanted me to come and get her another glass of punch."

"But the punch is-"

"What's that, Penny?" My dad said suddenly. "I'm coming, dear!" With that, he hurried out of the room.

"Well, this is officially the strangest my parents have ever been." I told myself, and then shrugged. It was my parents, of course they were strange.

Austin appeared at the doorway. "There you are! I've been looking all over for you."

"Well, you found me," I tried for a smile.

"Are you okay?" He asked as he walked over to me, concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine. But is it just me, or are my parents acting weird tonight?"

"I've only talked to your dad and he seems fine," Austin said. "My parents are fine, too."

"Hmm. I must be losing it," I told him, rubbing my head.

"Yes, we've established this earlier in the vehicle today."

I glared at him and Austin laughed, pulling me into a hug. "Don't worry about your parents, they're fine."

"I hope so."

"Now come on, let's go find Maci and enjoy the party, okay?" I nodded and Austin handed me my crutches before leading me out of the kitchen.

Maci and Sheridan were busy playing with Sheridan's stuffed animals on the ground in the living room. Leah and two of her friends were playing with them. "Hi mommy, hi daddy!" Maci said when she saw us.

I leaned down. "Hi, baby. Having fun with Sher Bear?"

"Yeah! She have fun toys!"

"Just don't get too attached, or you'll throw a fit when it's time to go home," Austin said.

"Too many toys," Maci shook her head. "Toys, toys, toys!"

"Hey, Leah," I greeted.

"Hey, Ally, Austin," she smiled. "These are my friends Cassie and Mack. Cassie, Mack, this is Austin and Ally, Maci's parents."

"Nice to meet you," Cassie, the red head, said. "Except we already know you. Because, you know, you're Austin Moon. And we already know Ally, too."

Austin laughed. "Nice, more fans."

"Don't worry, we aren't crazy fanatics who will attack you on sight," Mack said. She was blonde.

"Thank god, they're two of the only kids in my whole school who don't try to befriend me just because I'm friends with you," Leah said, looking at Austin.

"That's because we rock, duh," Cassie said, laughing. Mack smiled. I already liked these girls.

"Well, it's nice to meet you two as well," I smiled.

"Ally, where's mommy?" Sheridan asked.

"I'm not sure, Sheridan. Maybe she's with Jesse," I told her.

"Oh, she is, but they don't want to be disturbed right now," Leah smirked.

"Okay, Leah, not in front of the babies!" Austin exclaimed.

"I'm hungry," Sheridan said.

"I'll go get you girls some snacks," I said before standing up straight again. "I'll be back," I told my boyfriend before heading to the snack table to grab a couple of small bowls of fruit and vegetables. I was a real pro at carrying things with the crutches now. It was possible. I came back and set them down at the girls' feet and they happily started eating.

"What time is it?" I asked Austin.

"It's 6:30," he said. "Your video premieres at eight."

"Perfect," I said.

"But since this is a party, let's party," Austin told me as he led me towards the fun.

We spent the next while having fun with our friends and families. We talked with some of Quinn's friends and relatives. We just had a great time. Before I knew it, it was 7:55. Five minutes before my video was going to premiere.

"Quinn!" I yelled.

She grinned at me. "One step ahead of you, Ally!" she called from the other side of the room before grabbing a microphone. "Listen up, people!" Everyone stopped what they were doing and gave them her full attention. Her appearance was a little intimidating. "Ally's music video for the campaign premieres in five minutes so everybody head to the family room and somebody turn the TV to channel 632. Go!"

Austin grabbed Maci and followed everyone out while I crutched behind. Quinn caught up with me. "Nervous?"

"A little," I admitted. "But I'm sure it will be good."

"Good? Ally, it's going to be awesome! Trust me, you'll rock it."

"Thanks," I smiled as we joined everyone else in the family room. We made it just in time, and the DJ on the New Music Monday show announced my new video before it went black and it started.

The video started with me at my locker, laughing and talking with my popular crowd of friends, wearing expensive clothes and having perfect hair while the introduction music was playing. It then started playing my singing part.

_She stood out in the crowd, was a little too loud  
But that's why we love her  
She's not like other girls  
She could have conquered the world  
Until you broke her down_

It now showed me as the loser of the school, being shoved into lockers. My popular self came and hit the books out of my hands so they fell to the floor. I actually didn't think I had it in me to give such an evil, snarky look, but I apparently did, and it was scary.

_Are you happy now  
That she's on the ground?  
And do you realize the words you say make bruises that don't fade away  
Are you happy now  
That you've brought her down?  
And she's thinking that she won't fit in  
'Cause you said something's wrong with her  
Are you happy now?_

I was in my bedroom at my house as my popular self, skimming through facebook and seeing bad comments made towards me from other people, and I'm realizing that I'm not as popular as I think.

_He liked science not sports  
He knew what he stood for  
He's not like you, you don't like that  
15 years down the road  
He could be everything that you won't  
But right now you're breaking him down_

_Are you happy now_  
_That he's on the ground?_  
_And do you realize the words you say make bruises that don't fade away_  
_Are you happy now_  
_That you've brought him down?_  
_And he's thinking that he won't fit in_  
_'Cause you said something's wrong with him_  
_Are you happy now?_

_I've heard that it was done to you_  
_Is that why you do what you do?_  
_Well that's no excuse, no_  
_And if it felt like hell to you_  
_Then why'd you want to put them through what hurt you?_

I'm now my loser self, storming into the bathroom crying as I hurry to the sink, and stare at myself in the mirror, looking disgusted because I believe what all the mean girls have to say.

I felt a squeeze in my hand and looked over at Austin, who was smiling at me with such a proud look on his face. He even looked like he was about to cry. I leaned into his shoulder as the video kept playing.

_Are you happy now  
That you've brought them down?_

I-I-I I don't think so

My popular self stormed into the bathroom upset as well from what all the people are saying about her, and we finally both realize that we're not as different as we think, and we make up.

_Are you happy now  
That they're on the ground?  
And do you realize the words you say make bruises that don't fade away  
Are you happy now  
That you've brought them down?  
And they're thinking that they won't fit in  
'Cause you said something's wrong with them  
Are you happy now?_

At the end, my popular self and my loser self are seen passing each other in the halls, as we smile at each other.

_Are you happy now?  
Are you happy now? _

As the video ended, it showed a message towards bullying, and everybody in the room erupted into cheers. My mom came over crying as she engulfed me in a hug. "Oh, honey, that was absolutely amazing! Your first music video!"

"Ally, that rocked!" Quinn and Trish exclaimed as they attacked me when my mom let go.

"Thanks, guys, I'm so happy with it," I said, bursting with joy.

After everybody congratulated me and the party continued, it was just Austin and I in the room.

"Ally, you were so amazing," Austin whispered in my ear before pulling me into a big hug. I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks, Austin," I said into his chest. "That means a lot."

"I love you," he said as he pulled away and kissed my forehead.

"I love you, too," I smiled.

He slid off the couch and helped me up. "I'm going to keep replaying that video over and over."

"Go for it," I laughed. "You're so weird."

"I prefer the term special," my boyfriend said. "Has more of a ring to it."

"Whatever," I laughed. "You're still a dork." I wrapped my arms around his waist. "But you're my dork."

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Update will be as soon as I can :)**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? joelleR5_**

**INSTAGRAM: r5giirl**


	21. Rehearsals & a Really Annoying Baby

**A/N: Update time! Thanks for being patient again, guys :) and for your speculations about Jesse in the previous chapter, although I'm not saying anything. I know, I'm so horrible lol. Enjoy this chapter, it's full of drama!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A, but I own Maci. Don't own the song "What About Love" by Austin Mahone either, although it FABULOUS! :D**

* * *

Ally POV

I woke up to find the other side of the bed empty. I knew Austin had left early to go rehearse for the upcoming tour so I checked the clock. 6:45 in the morning. Okay, make that _really_ early. No longer able to sleep, I crawled out of bed and threw on Austin's purple sweater before heading downstairs to feed Pancakes. I was finally done with the crutches AND the walking cast. My ankle was fine now, but I knew I was going to have some issues with it in the future, but I would worry about that when the time came.

"Good morning, Pancakes," I said sleepily as I bent to scratch her head. She wagged her tail and licked my hand before standing up to stretch. She followed me over to her bowl and I poured her food in.

As I went to make coffee, my phone buzzed. I picked it up from where it was charging and saw that it was Trish.

_Get down here ASAP,_ her text read.

Confused, I quickly typed back, _What's wrong?  
_  
_Nothing, I'm just bored._

_Jeez, T, don't do that! You scared me._

_Sorry! But seriously, I'm the only girl here and listening to Dez and Austin talk about things I don't care about is agonizing._

_You don't care about a lot of things, _I texted back.

_True. Hurry!_

I rolled my eyes. _I'll come down when Maci is awake! GOODBYE TRISH!  
_  
I put my phone down and put the coffee on. While I waited for Maci to wake up I turned on the TV and The Notebook was on.

"Oh, nice," I said as I turned it up. It was only forty minutes into it and by the end, I was sobbing, as usual.

"Why are movies so sad?" I cried in frustration as I wiped my eyes.

I heard Maci yelling "Daddy!" from upstairs so I went up to get her.

She was standing up in her crib when I entered her room. "Daddy's not here again, honey," I sighed as I scooped her up. "You sure love Austin."

"No, no, I want daddy!" Maci was actually trying to get out of my arms.

"Maci, stop it right now, you can't have daddy at this very instant." As she continued to scream for Austin, I attempted to dress her but it wasn't working so well.

"Maci Harmony, what is with you this morning?" I exclaimed as she kicked me. "You don't kick people, especially your own mother!"

"Daddy daddy daddy! Where's daddy?" She yelled.

"We're going to see him soon, okay, honey? So please stop yelling at mom so I can get you ready." I sighed as I finally got her dressed and carried her struggling form back to my room. I set her on the floor and she rolled around in an angry fit, crying and crying.

"Maci, here's your monkey, play with him." I handed it to her but she threw it away.

"Oh, for the love of pickles," I muttered as I quickly rummaged through my closet for something to wear. It was hot out so I grabbed jean shorts, a pink tank top and my black ankle boots. I threw it all on and put my hair in a ponytail before going to wash up. When I was done, I grabbed a still crying Maci and took her downstairs.

"Are you hungry? Want some animal crackers?" I tried, grabbing them from the cupboard.

"No!" Maci quipped. Pancakes trotted into the kitchen and sat down beside Maci on the floor, but Maci just merely glanced at her before face planting on the floor in a rage and dragging herself towards the hallway.

"Well, I guess you aren't eating then," I said but I grabbed the box of crackers anyway and stuffed them in my purse before hurrying to grab her from her trek to the hallway. I didn't even bother to put shoes on her; I just took them with us into the garage to the car.

I strapped her in as fast as I could and jumped in the driver's seat before pulling out.

Five minutes into the drive to the studio, I had to turn the radio on to drown out Maci's crying. I mean, there wasn't anything I could do about it; Austin wasn't here, so tough luck for her.

I pulled into the back parking lot of the studio fifteen minutes later beside Austin's SUV and put my head on the steering wheel. My ears were ringing.

"Maci, daddy is here!" I said as a distraction to make her stop crying but it didn't work.

"Mommy, no! I want daddy," she hiccupped.

"I knew you do, honey, but daddy is very busy with work," I said, taking her out of her car seat and carrying her to the backdoor. "You will see him soon, okay? But you have to _stop crying_."

When I got inside, I could faintly hear Austin singing down the hall.

_"My world's going under, and I can't remember the reason that you cut off the line,"_ came his angelic voice that I fell in love with as soon as I heard it for the first time.

"Who does that sound like, Mace?" I said as I walked down the hall.

"Daddy?" she sniffled.

"That's right, that's daddy."

Trish came around the corner. "I can hear her screaming from the other room. What the hell is wrong with her?"

"She wants Austin. She's been doing this since she woke up and I'm ready to put my head through a wall," I told her. I gave Maci to Trish. "Here, you take her."

"Why me?" Trish exclaimed before wincing as Maci screamed again. "Damn, she's got lungs on her!"

"Well she doesn't want me! She can have fun with her auntie."

"Oh yeah, because she's in such a fun mood right now," my best friend said sarcastically. "Come on, Ally, you know she gets like this when Austin isn't around."

"Because she hates me."

"She doesn't hate you! It should be illegal for kids to hate their mothers, they carried them around in their stomachs for nine months and pushed them out of their bodies in agonizing pain. Mothers gave their children life!"

"Wow, T, that was deep."

"I try," she said. "But seriously, you can take Maci back. Screaming children are not my forte."

"No fricken way, I need a break. Give her to Dez or something, but don't let her see Austin until his break or else she won't ever calm down. She'll stop eventually. Ugh, I need an Advil. Good luck!" I told Trish before running off to the main part where Austin was rehearsing.

I grabbed an Advil from my purse and took it with water. I walked into the room to find Austin just finishing a song. Even this early in the morning he managed to look amazing in black jeans with the chain and a white t-shirt with all his necklaces. Simple but still HOT.

I flopped down in a chair by the snack table and when he finished his song, he noticed I was sitting there. He said something to his band before jumping down from the stage and heading my way.

"Hey, babe," he greeted as he gave me a hello kiss.

"Hey," I said. "How's rehearsal going so far?"

"Great! Where's Mace? I heard her screaming."

"Trish has her." I paused. "Or maybe Dez does. I don't know, someone does. I gave her to Trish but you know Trish."

"You mean to tell me you don't know where she is."

"I know where she is, I just don't know who she's with."

"What the hell, Ally?" Austin exclaimed.

"I needed a break, Austin; she hasn't stopped screaming for you since she woke up. That's all she's been doing!"

"You tried everything?"

"Yes! She won't even eat," I said.

"Well, try something else; I'm kind of busy right now."

"I have been trying and I'm well aware that you're busy. And why are you yelling at me?" I said, raising my voice.

"I'm not yelling at you, I just think you need to get her to be quiet, we can hear her out here and it's cutting into our rehearsal!"

"You are yelling, and you think I haven't been trying to do that?"

"I didn't say you weren't trying."

"You're implying it!"

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Bring her in here if it means calming her down."

"Austin-"

"Just do it, Ally."

I recoiled in shock at his harsh tone. "Snapping at me isn't going to help," I said to him, but I stalked out of the room to find Maci. I heard Austin yelling my name behind me but I kept walking. It's not my fault Maci is crying, and Austin was pissing me off. Instead, I found Dez in the lounge room with Maci. She had stopped screaming, but she was still fussing a bit.

"How did you get her to stop crying?" I asked him, astounded.

Dez bounced her on his lap. "You may not know this, but I'm also the Baby Whisperer as well as the Love Whisperer."

"No, you aren't," I whispered.

"Yes, I am," He whispered back. "Just look at her."

"Well, Austin wants her, so you can take her to him. I'm going to go find Trish."

"But-"

"Please, Dez," I begged. "I don't want to talk to him right now."

He looked at me for a second. "Are you guys okay?"

"Yes, we just had a little argument."

He looked at me again before sighing and nodding. "Alright."

I gave me a quick hug. "Thank you. Bye, honey," I added to Maci before leaving in search of my curly haired best friend.

* * *

Austin POV

"_What about love, what about love." _After finishing my new song, I turned to the band. "Alright, guys, take five."

Dez came through the door of the hall holding Maci just as I grabbed my sweat towel.

"So _you _had her," I said to him. "Ally should pay more attention to who has our kid."

"Trish gave her to me," Dez said. "No offence, man, but she's being super annoying today."

"Daddy!" Maci yelled, throwing her arms out when she caught sight of me.

"Dude, take her, she won't listen to any of us," Dez said as he pretty much thrust my daughter into my arms. "I had her calm for like a minute and then she started crying again."

"Hey, sweetie," I said as I wrapped her in my arms. "Why are you being difficult with your uncle, auntie, and mom, hey? Are you being a pain?" I turned to Dez. "Can you pass me that water bottle?"

He reached behind him and tossed it to me. "Thanks," I said before taking a gulp.

"No problem. So what are you going to do about that?"

"About what?" I asked, confused.

"That." He pointed at Maci, who was resting her head in my neck and sucking her thumb. "She's going to do this every time you leave for rehearsals in the morning. Which is almost every single day for the next month."

"She only does it sometimes," I said, rubbing her back. "Besides, Ally and I were up all night with her. She didn't want to go to bed, so she's overtired."

"Well good, because five minutes with her was enough for me. No offence," Dez added.

"None taken."

"I was actually talking to Maci."

I gave him a pointed look before kissing Maci's head.

"Austin, don't blame Ally for Maci's behaviour," Dez said suddenly.

"What am I blaming her for?"

"She told me you guys were fighting. Trish said she came in here looking exhausted, with Maci screaming in her arms. I just saw Ally two minutes ago and it looks like she's had a rough morning."

"It's hard with this tour coming up. Everyone is so busy."

"Have you guys considered a babysitter?"

"Well, my parents or Ally's parents usually do it, or Leah."

"Why don't you hire Leah? She's great with Maci, and it saves Ally having to watch her all the time alone."

I thought for a second. I had been pretty hard on Ally when she wasn't doing anything wrong. She was just trying to keep Maci away from me so she wouldn't lose it and ruin my rehearsal. She had been looking out for me.

I sighed. "I'll go talk to Ally." I pulled Maci's hands out of my hair. "Sorry, Mace, but you're going to have to go back with Uncle Dez. Daddy's busy right now."

"No, Austin, please!" Dez exclaimed.

I glared at him. "That's my daughter you're complaining about. Just because you're my best friend doesn't mean I won't go all Protective Daddy Mode on your ass."

"I mean, yay! I just love screaming children," Dez said quickly, taking her back.

"Daddy!" Maci immediately started crying again.

"Maci, you need to stop, you're a big girl now. Go with Uncle Dez and I'll see you soon, okay?" I hurried off before she got worse, and Dez quickly left the room with her. I could hear her faint yells get quieter as they got farther down the hall.

I sighed and my drummer, Chris, patted my shoulder. "She'll be fine with Ally, man. Go talk to her."

"This is going to be a long month," I sighed.

* * *

**A/N: Ooooooh, Maci is stirring up trouble! Hope you guys enjoyed, don't forget to review! much love, muah! xx**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? r5giirl**

**INSTAGRAM: r5giirl**


	22. I Hate When We Fight

**A/N: You guys are going to kill me at the end of this chapter :/ **

**Disclaimer: Don't own A&A, but I own everything else not associated with it. **

**Sorry this is kind of a short chapter! I wanted to give you guys one since you have waited so patiently!**

* * *

Ally POV

It had been two hours since Maci and I had arrived at the studio where Austin was rehearsing for his upcoming tour. Maci had finally calmed down and was off playing with Trish somewhere in the building. Trish swore she had her this time. Dez was busy with Austin.

All of this meant that I had some piece and quiet, _finally_, so I was making myself some tea in the coffee room, with no disturbances. While I waited for the water to boil, I leant against the counter and went over the argument Austin and I had in my head.

"_Well, try something else; I'm kind of busy right now."_

"_I have been trying and I'm well aware that you're busy. And why are you yelling at me?" I said, raising my voice._

"_I'm not yelling at you, I just think you need to get her to be quiet, we can hear her out here and it's cutting into our rehearsal!"_

I narrowed my eyes. Austin had no right to get mad at me. I wasn't the one screaming the whole time, and I was trying my hardest to keep Maci calm. Did he think I _wanted _her to keep shrieking and crying? God, sometimes he bothered me to no end.

The water for my tea started boiling and pulled me out of my thoughts so I grabbed the kettle and poured it into the cup, dropping the tea bag in. While I was stirring it, I heard the door open, so I turned around, thinking it would be Trish with Maci. It turned out to be Austin.

"Hey," he said quietly.

I dropped the spoon into my tea, letting it clink in the cup loudly. "Hi," I replied, crossing my arms.

"What are you doing?"

I raised my eyebrow at him. "Making tea. Why are you whispering?"

"Oh, right," he said in his normal voice now.

I shrugged and turned my back again, giving my full attention stirring my tea.

"Look, Ally-"

"It's fine, Austin, don't worry about it."

"No, it's not fine, and I can tell you're pissed at me," he said. I heard him walk up behind me.

"I think I have a right to be," I told him. "Did she finally stop screaming when Dez brought her to you?"

"Yeah," he admitted. "But she started again when he had to take her back."

I turned around to face him. "I knew it. She hates me."

Austin looked appalled. "Did that seriously just come out of your mouth? She does not hate you! You're her mom."

"Doesn't mean she has to like me. There _are_ people that hate their moms, you know."

"Which is messed up. But Maci doesn't hate you, Ally, she loves you. She's only one year old; she doesn't understand much yet."

"I don't care how old she is. Knowing I can't even get her to stop crying when she gets like this," Tears stung my eyes. "It hurts."

Austin softened as a couple tears leaked from my eyes. "Als, come here," he said as he pulled me into a hug and rubbed my back. I always loved it when he did that, and he knew it. "I guarantee when she gets older, Maci will love you even more than she does now. She won't even remember any of this."

"Don't try the guilt trip on me."

Austin sighed and rested his cheek on my head. "I'm sorry about what I said earlier to you. This tour is stressing me out and I haven't been able to rehearse as much because this is the first tour with Maci and I'm worried about all that, not to mention the fact that I don't even know if I should be _doing _this tour in the first place; Maci's not even two yet."

"You snapped at me. Over something I can't control."

He pulled back and held my shoulders, giving me a pained look. "I know, and I'm really sorry. You know I hate it when we fight."

I looked at him for a few seconds, not saying anything. When I finally did, I said, "I wish you would stop worrying about me and Maci."

"Why would I _not_ worry about you two? It's kind of my job."

"But you worry _too _much," I told him. "It's not good for you."

"I just don't want anything to happen to you guys," Austin told me.

"We're fine, nothing is going to happen to us," I assured him. "Keep thinking something will, and it will."

"Don't tell me that!" he exclaimed.

I giggled and slid my arms around his waist again. "Just trying to lighten the mood."

"How does _that _lighten the mood?"

I shrugged. "I don't know, I'm running on four hours of sleep."

"Does this mean you forgive me?" my boyfriend asked, looking down at me.

"Yeah, I forgive you. I can't hold a grudge."

He grinned and bent to kiss me. "I love you," he said.

"Love you, too," I replied. "But you better get back to rehearsing. I need to drink my tea."

Austin gave me one of his 'looks' that were only reserved for me. "Really?"

"Really really."

He chuckled. "Alright then. You know where to find me."

"I'll be out there in a couple minutes," I said.

He gave me one last kiss before leaving the room. I took my tea and sat at the table in the room. I skimmed through old phone calls in my phone and saw that there was one a missed one from Jace that I never saw. Sometimes my phone tripped out and I didn't hear it ringing. Confused, I thought I better call him to make sure it wasn't important.

It rang twice before he picked up. "Ally!"

Sounds important. Damn.

"Jace? I saw that you tried calling earlier, but my phone never rang. Is everything okay?"

"I tried about ten minutes ago, so you didn't miss me by much. And no, everything is not okay."

"What's up?"

"It's Leah."

My heart dropped. "Oh my god, what happened?"

"She's missing."

* * *

**A/N: Sorry sorry sorry sorry! D: But no worries, I am updating TOMORROW! So hopefully that brightens your moods...a bit**

**Hope you guys liked Austin and Ally's make up, I know you guys missed some fluff :)**

**Love you all, muah! xo**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? r5giirl**

**Instagram? r5giirl**


	23. Comfort

**A/N: Here's the promised update! Enjoy! :) And thanks for not killing me at the end of yesterday's chapter lol**

**Disclaimer: You know.**

* * *

**Previously on: Parenting 101**

_It rang twice before he picked up. "Ally!"_

_Sounds important. Damn._

"_Jace? I saw that you tried calling earlier, but my phone never rang. Is everything okay?"_

"_I tried about ten minutes ago, so you didn't miss me by much. And no, everything is not okay."_

"_What's up?"_

"_It's Leah."_

_My heart dropped. "Oh my god, what happened?"_

"_She's missing."_

* * *

Ally POV

I froze. "W-what do you mean she's m-missing?"

"I mean as in gone, we can't find her, she didn't come home. That kind of missing," Jace said.

"Did you try calling her?"

"She left her phone at the house because she was at work. Her coworkers last saw her in her car leaving."

"Where's Quinn?"

"Calling all of Leah's friends with my parents."

"Maybe she just got stuck in traffic?" I hoped.

"That's a long time to be stuck in traffic considering she worked yesterday evening," Jace said.

Shit.

"Jace, calm down. I'll get Austin and we'll be there as soon as we can, okay?"

"Okay, let me know if she calls you!"

"I will." I hung up and dumped the rest of my tea in the sink before running out the door. Thank god I was done with that walking boot and my ankle was all healed up.

I burst through the doors of the rehearsal hall, causing Austin and the band to stop what they were doing and glance in my direction. Trish and Dez were there too, with Maci.

I bent over and put my hands on my knees, out of breath. "Jace...called...Leah...gone..."

That was apparently enough for Austin to comprehend because his eyes widened and he jumped off the stage, throwing a quick "Rehearsals are done until further notice!" over his shoulder to the band as he ran over. Trish and Dez weren't far behind.

"Leah's gone?" Trish asked as I led them into the hallway.

"To where, the store? Because I really should call her and tell her to buy me new underpants while she's there," Dez said.

Trish smacked him across the head. "You idiot! She's missing!"

"Oh...that makes more sense," he said, before screaming, "LEAH'S MISSING!?"

That caused Maci to start crying in Trish's arms and this time Austin smacked Dez. "Good going, dude, you scared her!" Austin took Maci from Trish and tried to calm her down.

"Stop hitting me, my head is as fragile as an egg!"

"Is the inside of your head all mush like the inside of an egg?" Trish shot back.

"Can everybody just shut up?" I exclaimed. "Jace wants us at the house."

"We can't take Mace," Austin said loudly over her crying.

"Dez and I will watch her," Trish said.

"What about my car?" I said.

"I'll drive it back to my place now and drive it to yours when I bring Maci back. Dez and I both came in his vehicle so I don't have my car here anyway."

"Are you sure it's not problem?"

"Yes, just go." She took Maci from Austin and waved us off. "Call us if you hear anything."

"Thanks, you guys!" the two of us said before hurrying out the side exit door to the parking lot. We jumped in Austin's SUV and floored it out of the lot.

"When did Jace call?" Austin asked as we hit the freeway.

"He tried before but my cell never rang so I called back to see what he wanted."

"Leah doesn't have her phone?" Austin asked. "What kind of teenage girl doesn't carry around her phone all the time?"

"She was at work," I told him. "So a responsible one."

"I didn't think a sixteen year old girl could disappear so easily."

"Never underestimate the criminals of Miami," I shuddered.

"Do you think she was taken?" Austin asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know."

We got to Quinn's house ten minutes later and parked on the street. "Oh my god," I said. There were cop cars and detectives everywhere.

Quinn and Jace were sitting on the front steps. Quinn had her head on her older brother's shoulder.

I followed Austin as we walked up the driveway. When they saw us, they jumped up and ran over.

"Thank god!" Quinn cried fresh tears as she ran at Austin and threw her arms around his waist. "I'm seconds away from losing it."

While he comforted her, I hugged Jace. "Anything new?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. The detectives are talking to our parents."

"Where's Jesse?"

"He's on his way," Quinn said. She pulled away from Austin and came over to me while Jace moved to talk to Austin. I rubbed my friend's back. "They'll find her, Quinn, alright?"

"What if they don't?" She sobbed. "Or what if they do but she's…you know…" She couldn't finish as she burst into fresh tears again. The poor girl was a wreck; her hair was thrown into a long sloppy ponytail, and she was wearing sweats with one of Jace's sweaters. She looked like she hadn't slept all night, her brother the same.

Jace wrapped Quinn in a hug. "She's a strong girl, sis. She'll be fine."

"Where's Sheridan?" Austin asked.

Quinn wiped her eyes. "She's, uh, at our grandma's house. I didn't want her around this; she would keep asking where Leah was."

"Yeah, we left Maci with Trish and Dez," I said.

Quinn's mom came over. Her eyes were red. "The police need you two to answer some questions," she said quietly, talking to her two kids.

They nodded and I gave Quinn's hand one last squeeze before they went over. Their mom, Becky, turned to Austin and I. "Thank you for coming, kids. It means a lot to Jace and Quinn."

"It's no problem, Mrs. Bradshaw," I said. "We'll help in any way we can."

"Please, call me Becky," she insisted. "Where's your little one?"

"We left her with Trish and Dez," Austin spoke. "We thought it would be better."

Becky nodded. "I see. Well, if you'll excuse me, I need to go speak with Allan." Allan was her husband.

We nodded and she left. I turned to my boyfriend. "I can't imagine what they're going through right now."

He put an arm around my shoulder. "Leah will show up. I'm sure she's okay."

Just then, Jesse's car squealed around the corner of the street and he flew up to the curb. He jumped out and hurried over to us. "Hey, where's Quinn?" he asked, out of breath.

"Answering questions for the cops," Austin said, shaking his hand. I gave him a quick hug.

"I had to find someone to cover for me at work," Jesse told us. "So I'm a little late."

We talked for a few minutes before Jace and Quinn came back. Quinn ran into Jesse's arms immediately.

"Let's head inside," Jace said. "Get away from all this."

We followed our friends inside and gathered in the kitchen. "Do you guys want something to drink?" Jace asked.

"A water is fine," I said, Austin agreeing.

"I'm good for now, thanks," Jesse said.

Quinn went to the fridge and pulled out a Budweiser, cracking the can open and taking a swig.

"Quinn, no!" Jace exclaimed, yanking it out of her hands.

"Oh, like you give a damn," she snapped at him, trying to take it back. "Give it back!"

"You're not even of legal age!"

"So what? Teenagers drink underage all the time now! Don't even lecture me about that, Jace," she shrieked. "Now hand it over, that's my beer!" She was actually trying to climb up her brother to get the beer he was holding way over his head.

"Quinn!" Jesse said, jumping up and grabbing her around the waist, trying to pull her back. I stood up and hurried over to Jace, grabbing the beer from him and dumping the rest down the sink. A waste, I know, but it needed to be done.

"What the hell?" Quinn screamed. "Why'd you do that?"

Austin grabbed her legs, which were flailing everywhere.

"I just- I need to relax, to calm down, and the alcohol helps!" she yelled. "Let me go!" A few seconds later she started sobbing again and went limp in her boyfriend's arms. I hated seeing her like this; it broke my heart.

Sure that she was done throwing a fit, Austin let go of her and put his head in his hands on the counter.

"Jesse," I said quietly. "Let me take her to her room."

He nodded and handed Quinn's sobbing form over to me.

Austin made a move towards me but I held up a hand. "I'll be fine."

He hesitated but said, "Okay, just holler if you need anything. We'll be in here."

I wrapped my arms around Quinn and helped her walk out of the room and down the hall to her bedroom. Thankfully it wasn't upstairs because that would have been difficult trying to get her up there.

"Here, honey, let's get you cleaned up," I said gently, helping her sit on the bed.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you," she said thickly.

"Don't worry about it, it's okay."

"I'm just…I'm not myself today," she told me, fresh tears forming.

I went to her bathroom and started a bath for her. "Come on, you'll feel better after a bath."

She dragged herself to the tub and stripped before getting in. I helped clean her up and while she dried off, I went to her dresser and pulled out a fresh pair of sweats and a tank top for her to sleep in.

Quinn came back in, looking a little better. "Thanks, Ally," she whispered, taking the clothes from me.

"No problem," I smiled, trying to make her feel better. "I'll be right back," I said.

I went back to the kitchen where the guys were sitting around the counter. Jace looked up when he heard me come back in. "Is she okay?"

"She'll be fine," I said. "Do you have any Advil to help her sleep?"

He opened a cupboard and handed me a bottle. "Thanks," I said, taking one out and grabbing a glass of water so she could wash it down.

I went back to Quinn's room and saw that she was lying down in bed, her back facing me. Her shoulders were shaking lightly and I knew she was crying again.

"Quinn?" I asked quietly.

"Come in," she muttered.

I walked over to her and sat on the end of her bed. "I brought you an Advil and some water."

She sat up and tucked her hair behind her ears. She took the Advil and took a sip of water to wash it down. "Is it gone?"

She stuck her tongue out and moved it up so I could see underneath. "Good," I said.

We were quiet for a minute before she suddenly said, "Why Leah?"

I gave her a sympathetic look. "I don't know, honey."

"I mean, why _my _baby sister? The cops don't even have any leads yet."

"Don't worry so much, Quinn, Leah is a very strong girl," I soothed. "Try and get some sleep, though, alright? You'll feel better when you wake up."

She handed me the glass of water and I set it on her bedside table. She crawled under the covers and I tucked her in. She was out almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, so I shut her light off and quietly closed the door behind me on my way out.

I went back to the kitchen. "Where's Jesse?" I asked the two remaining boys.

"Talking to Mom and Dad outside," Jace said.

I nodded in understanding. "Hey Austin, can I talk to you for a second?" I asked my boyfriend. He followed me out of the room and back into the hallway.

"What's up?" he asked when we were in private.

"I think I should stay here with her overnight," I told him. "Just to make sure she's okay."

He pouted.

"Austin, she needs a friend right now," I told him.

He sighed. "Yeah, I know. Maybe Leah will turn up later."

"I hope so," I said.

"Do you want me to go home and pack you a bag?" he asked.

"No, no, that's okay. I'll just borrow some of Quinn's clothes, I'm sure she won't mind," I replied.

"How are you going to get home tomorrow? I've got to take the vehicle back and get Maci now."

"I'll find a ride. I'm sure somebody can give me a lift," I told him.

"Well, alright, if you say so. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then; call me if you need me to pick you up because I'll come right down here and get you."

I smiled. "I know, I will."

He bent to kiss me. "Love you, see you tomorrow."

"Love you too," I told him. He waved and went back into the other room.

I sighed. "Alright, now here's hoping Quinn doesn't wake up."

* * *

**A/N: I think it's safe to say that Quinn was not herself in this chapter, and it's understandable, obviously. Her sister is missing. Jace was more in control because he's the oldest and he has to be strong for his other little sister. That's a big brother's job! :) Man I wish I had a brother haha.**

**Review it up! Update will be as soon as I can, I promise you guys!**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? r5giirl**

**Instagram? r5giirl**


	24. Fighters

**A/N: Thanks for reviewing the last chapter everybody, much appreciated and I love you all! :D**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A but own everything else not associated with it.**

* * *

Ally POV

"No! No, don't take her, please! Leah!" I heard Quinn scream in her sleep. Oh, not again. I had gotten maybe an hour of sleep and it was already five o'clock in the morning. I sighed and jumped off the chair in the corner of her room, hurrying over to her trashing form.

"Quinn! Quinn, wake up," I said loudly as I shook her.

She shot up in bed, her eyes moving around wildly in the dark.

"Ally?" She whispered.

"Yeah, I'm right here," I said. "You were having a nightmare."

She nodded. "About Leah." She sniffled and silently started crying, so I sat beside her and wrapped an arm around her.

The rest of Quinn's family opened her bedroom door. "Quinn, honey," Becky said as she came over and hugged her daughter. "Are you alright?"

Quinn nodded. "I'm fine, mom, it was just a dream. Ally's here."

"Which we are very thankful for," Allan spoke up from the doorway. Jace, who was standing beside his dad, nodded in agreement. They both looked sullen.

"Okay, well, try and get some sleep," Becky said. She kissed Quinn's head. "We'll see you in the morning."

Allan, Becky, and Jace all left the room, the latter closing it behind them.

"You good?" I asked my younger friend.

She nodded and I tucked her back in before climbing back onto the chair. It wasn't comfortable to sleep on, but I would live.

* * *

Ally POV

"Ally?"

"Mmm."

"Ally."

"Austin, go away."

I heard a chuckle. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not Austin."

I slowed opened my eyes to see Jace standing in front of me, his blonde hair reflecting the sun streaming in from the window.

"Oh, hi," I said, stifling a yawn. "What time is it?"

He looked apologetic. "It's eight. I imagine you didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

I waved it off. "I can sleep when I get home." I sat up properly and stretched, looking around the room. "Where's Quinn?"

"She's in the kitchen eating. She told me to come get you before the good food is gone."

"Oh. Okay, thanks," I told him.

"No problem," he replied as he left the room. I got up and was about to open Quinn's dresser when I saw a fancy looking bra and underwear combo sitting on her bed with a note on top. There was also deodorant, a hairbrush, and other necessities. I grabbed the note.

Ally,

I went out and bought these for you while you were sleeping since you don't have anything here. Don't stress over it, it wasn't a problem at all and I won't take no for an answer. Thank you again for everything you've done with Quinn.

Becky

"Oh, Mrs. Bradshaw," I muttered but put the undergarments on anyway. I went to the dresser and grabbed a black tank top and a hot pink hoodie, throwing it on over top. The majority of Quinn's wardrobe was black, pink, and red.

I just wore my jean shorts from the previous day and threw my other clothes in my bag. I went to the washroom to clean up and brush my hair before heading to the kitchen where everyone was.

They all said good morning and I relayed the greeting, sitting beside Quinn at the table.

"Sorry for keeping you up all night," she said.

"It's fine, Quinn, I'm glad I stayed."

"Help yourself," Becky said, gesturing to the food on the table.

As we ate, it was an awkward silence, Leah's chair beside Jace empty. When we all finished, I helped Becky with the dishes while Quinn and Jace retreated to their rooms and Allan went to the living room.

"Thanks for the clothes, Becky," I said as I dried.

"No problem, honey, I'm glad you could keep my daughter company. It's been a hard couple of days."

I nodded in understanding. "If there's anything Austin and I can do, please let us know. We can always find someone to watch Maci for us."

Becky gave a small tired smile. "Thank you, dear, but we don't want you to feel like you have to be here all the time. You both have your own lives to worry about."

"You guys are family," I told her.

She gave me a hug. "You don't know how glad I am that Quinn was fortunate enough to run into you at Brittany's two years ago. Both you and Austin have been a tremendous help to us, as well as Trish and Dez."

I smiled and we finished cleaning up in silence.

"Do you need a ride back home? Allan and I have to stop at the station to answer more questions," Becky asked, trailing off at the end.

"If it's alright with you, but I can always ask Austin to pick me up; he doesn't mind."

"No, no, we can bring you home," she insisted. "We'll be in the car, you can gather your things."

I already had everything ready so I went to say bye to Quinn and Jace. Turns out they were both in Jace's room; Jace was watching TV while Quinn sat silently, staring at the wall.

I knocked on the open door. "I've got to head back now."

Quinn got up and came over to hug me. "Thank you for staying."

"You're welcome," I smiled. "I'll get your clothes back to you as soon as possible."

"No rush," she said. She let go and gave me a tiny smile before Jace hugged me.

"Be strong for her," I said so only he could hear. "She needs you."

He pulled back and nodded at me. "We'll see you soon."

I waved and went out to the car where their parents were patiently waiting. The ride home was silent, so I busied myself with checking my phone for messages. There was one from Trish.

_Austin told us everything. How are the Bradshaws holding up?  
_  
I glanced up and saw that Allan had his hand on his wife's knee and was slowly rubbing it.

I texted her back. _Not so good. Quinn was up most of the night._  
_  
Damn, that sucks._

_No kidding. She's a wreck and I'm exhausted_, I said.

_I would be 2._

I put my phone away and Allan pulled into the driveway of my house ten minutes later. "Thanks for the ride," I said.

"Anytime, Ally," they said. I waved as they left and trudged up the rest of the driveway. When I got inside, Pancakes greeted me at the door.

"Hey, Pancakes," I said as I bent down to pet her. She sat down in front of me and lifted up a paw, resting it on my shoulder.

"I missed you, too," I laughed.

She tilted her head and nudged my face. "I don't know what that is."

She barked and jumped up, running in circles. "Always good to see you, you nut job," I giggled as I pat her head and walked down the long hall to the kitchen. She followed behind me.

I checked the clock and saw it was only nine o'clock, so I figured Austin and Maci were still asleep. I fed Pancakes and while she ate, I quietly made my way upstairs to the bedroom, where Austin was sprawled across the bed on his stomach in his favorite sweats.

I went to check on Maci in her room. She was fast asleep, curled up under her purple Austin Moon blanket in her crib.

"My two babies," I whispered with a smile. "Both conked out."

I walked back into our bedroom and climbed onto Austin. He groaned and opened one eye. "Who's on my back?"

"Who do you think?" I laughed quietly.

He turned his head to look back at me. He smiled sleepily. "Mmm, hey there."

"Hi," I smiled, bending forward to kiss him quickly. "Ew, morning breath."

"Hey, you kissed me."

"I'm just kidding. Well, not about the morning breath but I don't care," I said.

"It's way too early in the morning to be awake," my boyfriend mumbled, turning over and shifting so I was now sitting on his bare stomach facing him. His hair was sexily tousled from sleep. Damn, he looked so good when he woke up, the complete opposite of me. "So how was it?"

I shrugged. "Same as when you left. Quiet, I stayed in Quinn's room all night."

He rubbed his eyes. "I don't know how they do it. That's a family of fighters, that's for sure." He squinted at me. "I'm assuming you got little sleep."

"Yeah, because Quinn was up most of the night screaming."

"Well, I was gonna say because the bags under your eyes are huge, but that works too," he replied.

"Gee, thanks," I deadpanned.

He grinned and sat up so I was in his lap with my legs on either side of him. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed my neck. "Don't worry, babe, you still look sexy."

"Flattery will get you nowhere," I teased, kissing him hard one last time before crawling off him and lying beside him. "I'm going back to bed."

"Awe, come on, I thought we were gonna have sex!"

"Austin!" I exclaimed, swatting him.

"I'm kidding," he laughed. "I'm too tired for that shit." He sprawled across me. "Later."

"You are such a little playboy," I laughed in annoyance as he pinned me down with his body. "Get off!"

He buried his face in my neck and twisted his legs up with mine. "I don't know; I'm pretty comfy here," he teased, peppering my neck with kisses.

"As good as that feels, I can't breathe with you on top of me, you dork," I told him.

He sighed and reluctantly rolled off. "Meanie."

I rolled my eyes and got under the covers. "Let me sleep."

"Only if you let me sleep. Or go _back_ to sleep, technically, seeing as how you woke me up so early."

I rolled over and kissed his bare shoulder lightly. "Austin, sleep."

"I thought you'd never demand."

"It's 'I thought you'd never ask,'" I corrected.

"Same difference. Now good morning."

"It's goodnight, Austin!"

"No, it's not, it's the morning! Who's being technical now?"

"Oh my god, shut up."

"You shut up," he shot back.

"Austin."

"Ally, darling."

I started swatting his head. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Trying to find the snooze button."

"Ha ha, so hilarious."

"I know I am," I said.

"Be quiet, babe, some of us are trying to sleep."

"I just- Wha-" I stammered as Austin stared shaking with laughter. "Ugh, I hate you."

"Shhhhh, grasshopper." I ignored that one.

* * *

Ally POV

"Maci, don't poke her in the eye."

"Eh?"

"Okay, fine, you can crawl all over her, but don't poke her."

"Okay."

I opened my eyes when I felt pressure on my legs, and I glanced back to see Maci crawling up them towards me.

I grinned sleepily. "Having fun there, Mace?"

She sat on me and nodded her head. I looked at Austin, who was standing beside the bed, already dressed in a white shirt, an unbuttoned blue plaid shirt, and jeans.

"How dare you let her crawl on me," I joked, rubbing my eyes.

He mocked a gasp. "I apologize."

I smiled and sat up to stretch before sitting Maci in my lap. "What time is it?"

"Two in the afternoon."

"Oh wow, I slept for a long time." I noticed a tray of food sitting on the bedside table. "What's the occasion?"

Austin grabbed it and grinned. "Just made you some lunch because I wanted to."

"Awe, aren't you the greatest?" I said.

"Why yes, yes I am."

I rolled my eyes jokingly. "Well, thank you, this is very nice of you."

"Anytime. But come on, sweetie, let's let mommy eat in peace," Austin said as he pulled Maci off of me and into his arms. He threw her up a little in the air and caught her, making her giggle madly.

"You know I hate when you do that," I warned.

"Oh, relax, I won't drop her. And she loves it." He did it again and she shrieked with laughter. "See?"

"Yeah, yeah," I said. He bent over to kiss my forehead before the two of them left the room to go back downstairs.

"Pancakes," I said, observing the food. "Of course." I noticed a bowl of pickles beside it. "All is forgiven. Happy munching, Ally! Why thank you, Ally."

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed! What was your favorite part? :) Update will be as soon as possible but I also have a job and that takes time away from writing :/ But I always try to update as soon as I can, I promise!**

**Joelle xx**

**Instagram? r5giirl**

**twitter? r5giirl**


	25. Shocked

**A/N: Update! Thank you for reviewing and doing everything else, I love you guys! :) So, I'm thinking about starting a new story soon, like I'll still have this one on the go, but I'll have another one too! Should it be supernatural? Or just normal? You guys tell me! :)**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A, but own everything else not associated with it.**

**Oh and there is one swear in here, the "F" word, but this will be the only one throughout the story, besides the "S" word...sorry if any of you are against that :/**

* * *

Ally POV

I walked in the door of the house and was immediately met with an angry Austin stalking down the hall towards me.

"Where the hell were you?" He exclaimed before I could even shut the front door.

"I went to talk to my boss at Marianne's," I said, walking past him. "Why are you so pissed?"

"You've been gone for five hours! I came home and you weren't here; you didn't write a note, text me, call me, nothing!"

I sighed. "Austin, relax. I didn't think you would be home this early."

"I was really worried about you."

"Why?"

He stared at me like I was stupid. "Ally. You've been gone for_ five hours_. We don't need the same thing to happen to you like it did to Leah!"

It had been four days since Leah had gone missing. The police had found her car at a gas station but no sign of her, sadly. The security camera inside didn't even catch anything that would give better leads.

I put my hands on his arms. "I'm sorry I didn't leave a note or anything. I didn't mean to worry you like that. I'm fine."

He stared at me before softening and pulling me into a hug. "Don't scare me like that again."

"I promise I won't."

He followed me into the living room. "Why were you gone five hours?"

"I got stuck in traffic and I went to drop Maci off at your parents', plus I talked to my boss about shifts and talked to Trish at her new job. I was all over Miami."

"Where is she working now?"

"The zoo. She cleans the animal pens."

"Gross," Austin shuddered.

I smirked. "Such a man."

"Hey, cleaning animal pens is disgusting. Who enjoys that?"

"Zookeepers. I wouldn't worry; I say she lasts a day." I grabbed a water bottle from the fridge. "So what did you do today?"

"Stopped by Dez's place to play video games then we went to the mall and met up with Jace."

"What were you doing at the mall?"

"Shopping," he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Well, sorry I don't find many guys that like shopping. Get me anything?" I teased.

"Nope!" He said, rather quickly. "Sorry, babe, next time."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you okay?"

"Never been better, now that I know you're safe."

Well played, Moon, well played.

Before I could interrogate him any further, the landline rang. Austin walked over to the table and grabbed it. "Hello?"

I took a sip of water as he listened to whoever was on the other line. "Are you fucking serious?" That caught my attention and he looked at me, phone still pressed to his ear. "Okay. Oh god. Where are you guys? Maci is at my mom and dad's so Ally and I are leaving now. Thanks, dude. See you later. Bye."

"What happened?" I asked when he hung up.

"They found Leah," he grinned.

"Aaaaaaah!" I screamed with happiness as I ran over and threw my arms around him. "That's such a relief! Where?"

"Well, she was in a secluded part of Miami. Someone found her crawling up the ditch on the highway and called the police. They brought her to the hospital."

"The ditch?" My eyes widened. "She must have gotten away."

"I know but who cares, they found her and she's alive. Let's go!" Austin and I rushed out the door to his vehicle and made our way to the hospital.

"Who was on the phone?" I asked.

"Jace. He said they're all at the hospital right now."

"Oh, thank god she's safe and sound," I breathed.

"No kidding. Now that family doesn't have to worry anymore."

"That poor girl is going to have nightmares," I said sadly. "She was obviously abducted."

"More than likely, yeah. I'm just glad she got away. That girl never fails to amaze me with her strength and determination. And she's only sixteen."

When we arrived at the hospital ten minutes later, it turned out to be rather busy and it took a while to find a place to park. We finally found a spot and ran inside. Jace met us at in the lobby.

"Hey, Jace," I breathed from the running. I hugged him. "How is she?"

"She's got a sprained knee, cuts and bruises and a concussion but other than that, she's okay," he said. "The ambulance brought her in a couple hours ago."

"Oh, I'm just so happy she's alright," I smiled. "Where's Quinn?"

"With Leah. Our parents are at the food court getting Leah food. She's been here an hour and she's already complaining about the food." He rolled his eyes when he said it, but you could tell how happy Jace was to have his youngest sister back. "Come on, visiting hours just started."

We followed him down the hall and up a flight of stairs to the second level of the hospital. Leah's room wasn't far down the hall.

"Knock knock," Jace said, even though the door was open.

"Hey, guys!" Quinn exclaimed, running over to give both me and Austin hugs.

"Hey girl," I smiled as I hugged her back.

"Hey, Leah," Austin said carefully as we walked more into the room. She looked like she was just waking up from a nap. There was a cut on her lip and her one cheek was a little bruised, but other than that, she looked okay. Her knee was also wrapped up with a brace. Her long curly brown hair was in a side ponytail. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm nursing a killer headache, but other than that, I'm fine," she smiled tiredly. The bags under her eyes were big and she had lost weight. "I didn't know you two were coming. I missed your handsome and gorgeous faces."

"Jace called us," Austin told her.

"We can come back though, you look like you're exhausted," I said, but she cut me off mid-rant.

"No, stay! It's okay, really," Leah said. She tried to pull herself up a bit but Jace and Quinn stopped her.

"Jesus, Leah, don't move too much!" Quinn told her.

"You'll screw up your knee and get dizzy," Jace agreed.

"Oh my god, I'm not broken, you guys," Leah snapped at her older siblings. "I swear I'm fine, don't baby me so much. God, I hate being the youngest." She brushed a loose strand of hair out of her eyes. "So, how's Maci? I miss that little girl of yours."

Austin smiled. "She's great. She's missed you, too."

Leah's parents came in. "Here's some food, honey," Becky said, setting the tray on her daughter's bedside table.

"Thanks, mom," she said.

"No problem, we're just glad you're okay," Becky said, tearing forming in her eyes.

"Mom, please don't cry. Dad, control her," Leah sighed as she broke crackers over her soup.

There was a knock on the door and we all looked up to see two detectives standing there. "We're sorry to bother you, but I'm Detective Marshall, this is Detective Stevens," the female detective said, gesturing to her partner on the last name, a male. "We need to ask your daughter a few questions," the female said to Becky and Allan.

They hesitated. "Right now?"

"It would be best. We're sorry, but it's urgent. Immediate family is welcome to stay."

Allan sighed and nodded. "Alright."

"We'll come back," I said to Leah. Austin nodded in agreement.

"No, you guys can stay," Leah said.

"It's crucial that this stays confidential," Detective Stevens spoke up.

"Austin and Ally won't tell anyone. Either my friends stay, or I don't talk. Your choice." Leah crossed her arms to make her point and I could see a smile form at the corner of Allan's mouth.

Detective Marshall sighed. "Fine." She got out her little notebook, and Austin and I went to sit in the corner of the room. Since there was only one chair, I sat in Austin's lap.

"Now, Leah. Tell us what happened," Stevens started.

"I went to get gas after work on Tuesday, so I stopped at the gas station close to where I work," Leah said strongly. She didn't seem as shaken as I thought she was going to be.

"Where do you work?"

"I'm a waitress at The Blue Moon."

The detectives nodded, jotting down what she said. "And what happened after you got gas?"

"I got back in my car and realized I forgot to grab peanuts because it was a long ride home and I love peanuts. I moved my car and parked it in the lot so I wasn't holding people up at the tank that needed gas before I went back into the little convenience store to buy the peanuts. When I came back out, some guy was at my car."

"Did you recognize him?" Quinn spoke up.

"Ma'am, leave the questions to the professionals, please," Detective Marshall said harshly.

"Ma'am? _Professionals?_" Quinn repeated.

"Uh oh," Austin muttered under his breath. I lightly elbowed him.

"Quinn Kelsey, don't," Allan warned.

"What? My sister was just found in a ditch after four days of being missing and I'm not allowed to ask a simple question that could solve this whole damn case?" she exclaimed. "And I'm hardly a ma'am, I'm nineteen!"

Jace grabbed her arm, but gently. "Let's go take a walk, sis."

"I can come," I offered, but Jace shook his head as they passed.

"It's better if I take her. She usually listens to me," he said.

"No, I don't," Quinn said.

He pushed her ahead of him. "Yes, you do. Let's go." They left the room. I could hear Quinn's bickering fade as they got farther down the hall.

"Sorry about my oldest daughter," Becky apologized. "That's how she shows she's…" She struggled to find the word. "Happy?"

Leah and Austin snorted with laughter while Allan and I failed to hide smiles.

"Back to the questioning," Detective Stevens said. "So you said this _guy_ was at your car when you came back out, correct?" Leah nodded, but winced at the movement. Becky tried to help, but she swatted her mom away. "Do you remember what he looked like?"

"It was too dark. And from that point, I don't remember anything up until I woke up in a basement tied to a chair. I saw him after though; it was some random guy I had never seen before. Buzzed hair, tall and bulky with brown eyes. That's the best I've got."

"Did he physically hurt you?"

"He hit me with a wooden plank in the head when I lipped him off, hence my concussion," Leah said, pointing to her head with the hand that wasn't attached to an IV. "And he hit me occasionally, grabbing my hair and such, but nothing seriously bad. I mean, that's bad, but not like…well, you get it."

I winced. Austin wrapped his arms around me, pulling me back against his chest. He pressed his mouth against the back of my shoulder.

"I spent four days in the basement then managed to break free from my restraints with some sharp saw he had in the basement. The dummy even had a window down there, so I easily opened it and slid through at some point in the night. I had no clue where I was, it was cold and I couldn't see a thing. I was definitely in a forest of some sort because I scraped myself up on branches while running and tripped over a tree root, which is how I screwed up my knee. After stumbling everywhere the whole night freezing and in pain, just hoping I would find somebody to help me," Leah's voice cracked on the last sentence, her tough girl exterior finally fading. "I finally came to the highway late this morning. My knee couldn't take it anymore so I dragged myself up the ditch and some lady and her husband stopped to help me and called 911." She drew in a shaky breath, a few tears sliding down her cheeks. "And, well, you know the rest."

The detectives nodded. "We're working on finding the man who took you. No further questions. We'll let you rest. Thank you for your time."

Allan and Becky nodded and the detectives left. Everyone was quiet for a few seconds before Leah spoke up again. "Mom, Dad, can you give me a minute with Austin and Ally?"

"Sure, honey, and then I think it's time you rest again," Becky said. "Okay?"

Leah nodded and her parents left. I stood up and walked over to her bed, sitting down on the edge. Austin took a seat in the chair beside the bed. "Thanks," she said to me.

"For what?" I asked, confused.

"Staying with Quinn that one night," Leah replied. "She told me you went over and stayed with everyone. Both of you," she added, looking at Austin. "So thank you. I think you helped them stay sane."

"Quinn was pretty upset," Austin admitted.

Leah sighed. "Yeah, she gets like that. She'll be fine now since she knows I'm okay and I'm back, but she's still in shock. It takes time for her to process big things."

I nodded. "I get it. We're always here for you guys."

Leah smiled. "I know. That's why I love you both!" She opened her arms for a hug. Austin and I grinned and we both hugged her gently. "Awe, come on, you can squeeze me harder, I won't break," she joked.

I laughed and pulled away. "Just being cautious. But we better go so you can rest."

Leah pouted. "Okay. Well, text me or something and you can come down to hang with me and Quinn. I'll get sick of her and Jay eventually."

Austin grinned. "Sounds good. We'll see you later."

"Bye! Thanks for coming!" she said happily. We waved and left the room, saying bye to her parents on the way out. We found Quinn and Jace coming back down the hall on our way to the stairs.

"Leaving?" Quinn asked.

"Yeah, we'll let Leah rest," Austin said.

"I'll call you later, okay?" I told her, hugging her tightly.

"Okay, sounds great," Quinn smiled. I was glad to see her back to normal again. "Jesse is supposed to be coming later, too."

I nodded. "Good, I haven't talked to him in a while."

Austin and Jace were off talking to the side, so I went over to them. They quit talking as soon as they saw me. I brushed it off and took Austin's hand. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah," he said. "I'll see you later," he added to Jace.

"Text me!" Jace called after us.

"What was that about?" I asked as we got to the stairs.

"Just talking about Leah," he said.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Austin, is there something you want to tell me?"

"Nope, nothing. Everything is perfect."

"Okay," I said slowly. "If you say so."

"Oh, I do."

I shook my head before changing the subject. "Wanna just go out for supper? I don't feel like making anything."

"I was just about to ask you the same thing," Austin said, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "Because I don't feel like cooking either."

"Marianne's?"

"Might as well, we get discounts!" my boyfriend said excitedly. "On pancakes!"

"We get discounts on everything we get there," I told him.

"Yeah, but I only care about the pancakes!"

I laughed and wrapped my arm around his waist as we walked out of the hospital. "Of course you do."

* * *

**A/N: I hope that was a good chapter, but it was obviously good on the fact that LEAH IS SAFE AND SOUND AND BACK HOME! :) Hope you guys enjoyed it! And don't forget to leave me your opinions on which type of story to write next: Supernatural or just regular. I've got a few plot ideas already :)**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? r5giirl**

**Instagram? r5giirl**

**PS. DO ANY OF YOU WATCH TEEN WOLF?! If you do, WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED ON TONIGHT'S EPISODE LIKE AAAAAAAH I CAN'T EVEN FUNCTION. PM ME IF YOU WANNA FANGIRL OR TALK OR RANT OR ANYTHING! AND WHO WATCHES THE FOSTERS!? THAT SHOW IS GOING TO BE THE DEATH OF ME.**


	26. Countdowns & Clubs

**A/N: Hi guys! I had time today, so I did another chapter :) It's pretty long too, so yay! Now, I will warn you that there is clubbing in this chapter, and there will be drinking involved. This isn't the real Austin & Ally, keep in mind, this is FANFICTION. So, just putting that out there. I do what I want lol, but nevertheless, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A, just playing around with the characters :) own everything else not associated with it. And I don't own part of the song "In The Ayer" by Flo Rida, when Ally is singing. It's a really great song, you guys should listen to it :)**

**PLEASE READ THE A/N AT THE END :)**

* * *

Ally POV

"Hey, Als!"

"What?" I yelled down to Austin from our bedroom.

"Come down here for a minute; I want to show you something."

I dropped the pile of laundry on the bed that I still needed to fold and headed downstairs.

I found Austin in the living room watching TV. Maci was my parents'. She had been spending a lot of time with both sets of grandparents lately because we wanted her to get time in with them before we left for the tour for a few months. "What's up?"

He was practically bouncing with excitement. "Check it out!" He grabbed the TV remote and turned up the volume. Crazy Countdown was on, a show that broadcast the Top 40 music videos in the country for that week, commercial free.

"That was the wildly popular R5 coming in at number two with their new single, "Don't Doubt Me." Here's your number one video for the week, Ally Dawson with Are You Happy Now? I'm Bailey Summers and thank you for joining me for this week's Crazy Countdown."

My video started playing and I shrieked with excitement, jumping up and down. "That's me, that's my video! I'm number one!"

Austin grinned. "I know!"

"I'm calling my parents." I dialled their home number and my mom picked up. "Hello?"

"Hi Mom," I said.

"Hi, Ally! Maci is fine."

"Yeah, I'm not calling about that," I said. "Well, it's good she's fine but that's not the point of this call." I put the phone on speaker. "Mom, you're on speaker now so don't say anything embarrassing."

"All the more reason to say something embarrassing," she said.

"Mom!"

"I'm just kidding, honey," she laughed. "Hi, Austin."

"Hey, Penny," he replied. "Ally's got exciting news to tell you."

"My video is number one in the country for the week!" I exclaimed into the phone. "Go to channel 207!"

My mom screamed. "Ally, that's amazing! Awe, there's my little girl. Look, Maci, there's your mom on the TV!"

You could faintly hear Maci yell "Mommy! Mommy!" in the background before shrieking happily.

"She likes it," my mom said. "Your dad says congratulations!"

"Tell him thanks for me."

"Maci's not being a brat, is she?" Austin asked.

"Oh no, she's perfectly fine, no troubles at all. She's asked for both of you a couple of times."

"Awe, we miss her," I said. "Thanks again for watching her, we really appreciate it."

"Oh, you know we're always here to help in any way we can," my mom said kindly.

"We know," I said. "But we better go. Love you!"

"I love you both! Thanks for calling, Maci says bye!"

"Bye, sweetie!" Austin and I said. "Bye, Penny," Austin added before I hung up.

"You know what, we should celebrate tonight," Austin told me. I put the phone back on the charger in the hallway.

"And do what?"

"Let's hit up Neon Buzz. We haven't been there since Maci was born."

Neon Buzz was a club in Miami that wasn't too crazy. The four of us used to go there all the time before Maci was born. Since then, we hadn't been back. Anyone over 17 could go, but minors weren't allowed alcohol. Look who wasn't a minor anymore.

"We can even invite everyone else," Austin added. "Come on, it'll be fun."

"Hey, I'm not disagreeing," I told him. "I'm ready to get out for a change."

"Awesome! Okay, it's seven now, so you call Quinn and Trish, and I'll call Jace, Jesse, and Dez."

We split off our separate ways to call our friends. Quinn and Trish were all for it. Quinn said she would leave Sheridan with her grandparents since Leah was still in the hospital and her parents were there with her.

After hanging up with them, I went to check the plans with Austin.

"Dez and Jesse are coming," he said. "Jace is in Orlando visiting his girlfriend. You?"

"Both Trish and Quinn."

"Nice," he said. "So everyone is meeting here at ten."

"Yep," I confirmed. "But first let's eat, I'm starving."

"Me too. What do you want? I'll make you something too," Austin said as he opened up the cupboards.

"I'm really in the mood for grilled cheese."

"You read my mind," he grinned as he got out the bread, butter, and cheese.

While he made our food, I thought about the fact that my video was number one in the country for the week. It didn't seem that long ago when I had stage fright. Now, I was really putting my music out there.

"What are you thinking about?" Austin asked.

"Just the fact that my video is number one," I replied.

He grinned. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks," I smiled.

"I've been meaning to talk to you about something that has to do with Maci for a while," Austin said while he flipped the grilled cheese sandwiches.

"Okay," I said slowly. "What's up?"

"Well, since I've got this tour coming up and we're both really busy with not just my work, but with your job too, Dez thought it would be a good idea to get a babysitter for Maci. We can't take her everywhere."

"That's what our parents are for," I told him.

"Als, let's be honest, our parents love Maci, but even they don't want to be watching her all the time," he said. "Why don't we just hire Leah? She loves kids, especially Maci and Sheridan. She's really good with both of them, you've seen it."

"We would obviously have to wait until she's fully recovered. She's kind of in a knee brace with a concussion right now." I rested my elbow on the counter. "And I don't know how long that's going to take."

"It's not a for sure, and we still have to ask her, but I'm sure she would do it. Besides, it's not like it's full time anyways," Austin said. "It's a good idea."

"Yeah, it is," I admitted. "Who knew Dez could be smart with something?"

"I know, right?" He handed me my sandwich. "My lady."

"Why thank you," I smiled. "Mmmm, I love grilled cheese."

"Diddo."

We ate and made small talk, and I loaded the dishwasher while Austin went to find Pancakes so he could feed her. It was actually so hard to find that dog sometimes in this huge home. She was always in the most random places. One time, I found her in one of the downstairs bathrooms' shower sleeping. Another time, I found her under our bed, and Austin found her behind the TV in the den once. Don't ask how we always manage to miss her hiding places.

I went upstairs to shower and when I got out, I found Austin in the walk-in closet in our bedroom. "Where was she this time?"

"Maci's closet," he replied.

"Figures," I said. "I'm going to dry my hair."

"You do that." Since my hair was about the same length as Kylie Jenner's, which was near my elbows, it took a while to dry, so by the time I was done drying my hair, Austin was already changed.

"How do you get dressed so fast?" I asked as I rifled through my part of the closet.

He shrugged. "I don't know. I'm a dude."

"Yeah, but you're you."

"True."

He was wearing black jeans with a chain, a black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up that was unbuttoned at the top revealing his necklaces, and colourful high tops. His hair was already styled too, all tousled to perfection. Even though he was 21, he looked 18. I guess I shouldn't be talking; I looked like Leah's age. I'd probably get ID'd at the club.

"I won't be long," I said, grabbing a dress from the rack.

"Don't rush," Austin said, belly flopping onto the bed. "I could watch you change all day."

"You're a perv."

"You love me."

I rolled my eyes and closed the closet door. "Don't wear white!" Austin yelled.

"I'm not!" The dress I picked was a simple black cocktail dress with the sides cut out. I chose hot pink Jeffrey Campbells to go with it that made me close to Austin's height. After throwing that all on, I went back into the bedroom and grabbed my curler.

Austin whistled. "Not bad, Dawson."

"Not bad?"

"I'm just kidding; you look as beautiful as ever. But you look especially beautiful in that dress."

"Thanks," I smiled as I grabbed my makeup. I did a black smokey eye. "What time is it?"

"Nine."

"Oh, we have plenty of time. Which is good, because my hair is going to take forever."

"I wanna try and curl it," Austin said excitedly as he jumped off the bed, just as I was sitting down on my vanity chair.

"Seriously?" I asked.

"Yeah. I mean, what's the worst that could happen?"

"You could burn my scalp."

"Oh, yeah. Well, I'll be careful."

"Just like you were careful that time you shaved my legs for me when I was pregnant because I couldn't reach, and you cut me?"

"Yeah!"

I sighed and handed him the hot curler. "Fine. Loose curls, please."

He grabbed a chunk of my hair. "You got it. Loosey Goosey."

I rolled my eyes and smiled as he got to work. Turns out, he was actually pretty good. "Wow, I'm impressed," I said.

"I'm kind of a natural."

"You should have been a hairdresser instead of a rock star," I teased.

"No way! I only do this for you."

"Awe, you're sweet," I said. "Think you could twist my hair into a braided and curly fancy bun?"

"Don't push your luck."

I laughed. "I'm kidding."

"Don't move!"

"Sorry."

He quietly hummed to himself as he started the other side of my head and he finished a few minutes later. "So how did I do?"

"You did awesome," I said, shocked. "Damn, babe, those are better than what I can do," I added as I leaned closer to the mirror to inspect my hair.

Austin grinned proudly. "I'm just awesome, that's all there is to it."

"Don't get cocky," I smirked, lightly punching him on the shoulder as I passed him to the dresser to grab my clear lip gloss. I smeared it on and smacked my lips. "There, finally done."

"You look perfect."

"Stop, you're making me blush," I smiled.

"Oh, am I? Well in that case, you look perfect with your flowing glossy curls and your perfect makeup with your big brown eyes and gorgeous smile-"

"Okay!" I laughed. "Come on, let's go."

Austin grabbed my hand and dragged me down the stairs. "Woah there, slow down, babe, I'm not exactly wearing flat shoes," I told him.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly. "I forgot. I guess I really shouldn't forget, considering you're almost my height now."

"Ha ha," I deadpanned. I stopped. "Wait a minute. Who's the designated driver for tonight?"

"I can do it."

"You? Seriously? It should be Quinn or something, she's the only one underage."

"We'll figure it out when everyone else gets here." There was a knock on the door. "Which is apparently now."

"Good thing we're ready, they're early," I said as Austin went into the hallway to get the door. I grabbed a glass of water and a minute later, everyone walked into the kitchen, all dressed to impress.

"Hey!" Trish said, giving me a hug. "You look hot! And congratulations on the video!"

I laughed. "So do you. And thanks, T!" She was wearing a zebra print dress and black heels, her naturally curly hair hanging around her shoulders.

Everyone said their congrats to me before Quinn tackled me in a hug. "Hey Ally, long time no see," she joked.

"Oh, I know," I grinned. "You look so pretty!" She was wearing a hot pink strapless dress with black wedge boots, her long bleached hair straightened to perfection, her bangs nicely styled over her forehead.

"Thank you," she smiled. "I feel bad leaving Leah, but she made me come out. She actually yelled at me when I tried to protest. She said I need to have fun."

"Which you do. Leah is fine, she's almost one hundred percent better," Trish said. "Don't worry."

"Now that you girls are done fangirling over each other's outfits, how do we look?" Jesse joked.

We said they all looked nice. The guys were dressed similarly, just different colors. Dez was wearing some vibrant pattern of colors; I don't even know how to explain it.

"Everyone got their ID's?" I asked. We all nodded.

"Come on, let's go party!" Trish exclaimed, dragging Dez out the door, everyone else following. We all got into Austin's SUV and made our way to the club. Trish and Dez were in the very back, Jesse and Quinn were in the back, and Austin and I were in the front.

"Who wants to DD tonight?" I asked.

"I'll do it," Quinn said. "I can't drink anyways."

"You rock," Austin said to her. "You know how to work my vehicle, right?"

"Yep."

"Awesome." We all made small talk on the way to the club and before we knew it, we were there. There was already a line outside.

"Oh, joy," Trish muttered.

"What, did you not think there was going to be a line?" Dez asked her as we got out.

"No, but I was hoping it wouldn't be this long," she replied.

While we waited, I called my mom to tell her what we were doing and the line slowly progressed. We made it to the front half an hour later. "Finally," Trish exclaimed as the guy checked all of our ID's.

The dance floor was already packed, the lights were flashing everywhere, the music was blaring full blast, and the bartenders were already handing out drinks by the second. "Awesome, this is going to rock!" Austin said happily.

I smiled. "Come on, pretty boy, let's go dance." My dancing had improved, with help from Austin and Quinn, who turned out to be a very good dancer, even as good as Austin. But I still wasn't all that great.

Austin grabbed us drinks and we danced to the loud beats that were making the floor shake, having a great time together. After a while, I decided to take a break and get a drink, so Jesse came with me.

"I'll have a Bud," I told the bartender.

"Same," Jesse said.

"ID," the bartender said. To me only. Jesse snorted with laughter.

"Shut up, it's not my fault I don't look of age," I snapped at him as I dug through my wallet and pulled out my ID to show the bartender. He looked at it before nodding and going to get our drinks.

"So how's life? I haven't talked to you in a while," Jesse said.

"It's good. Hectic with Austin's tour coming up but it's not really anything new. How are you doing?"

"Pretty good, thanks. Relieved to see Quinn happy again after they found Leah," Jesse said. We got our drinks and sat on the barstools. "I'm glad she's okay."

I nodded. "I know. I was really worried."

"You're telling me. By the way, congratulations on the video again. That's really amazing."

"Thanks," I smiled.

"Hey, did you figure out why your mom was acting so weird around me?"

I took a sip of my drink. "I didn't ask, to be honest," I admitted. "But she's been normal and everything, hasn't said anything about it, so I think she's fine."

Jesse nodded. "Okay, good, because I have no idea what I did."

"You didn't do anything," I promised. "My parents are just odd."

He laughed. "Well if you're sure."

"I am," I smiled.

* * *

Quinn POV

After a few hours of dancing and hanging out with my friends, I went to the bar to get a bottle of water. Ally came with me. And she was a drunk Ally.

"Ally, you don't need another drink," I sighed.

"Awe, come on, Quinny, this is my night to celebrate! My video is number one!" she told me before telling the bartender to give her some type of shot I had never heard of. I didn't even know Ally drank.

"Quinny?" I repeated.

"Oops, did I call you Austin? I'm so sorry, you're definitely not Austin," Ally giggled.

"No, you called me- You know what, nevermind," I shook my head.

A song came on. "Oh! I love this song!" Ally exclaimed. She quickly took her shot and grabbed another cup of beer before grabbing my hand. "Come on, girlfriend, let's go dance up a storm! Well, not actually dance up a storm; I'm pretty sure only the Greek gods can do that. And the Roman ones. Are they the same thing? Do they even exist? Do-"

"Ally, stop talking please," I begged.

She looked at me before bursting into laughter. "I'm sorry," she gasped. "I just think you're such a fun person. I love you, Trish!" Ally threw her arms around me in a hug, almost taking me down. Some of her drink spilled on my dress.

She gasped in horror. "Oh my god, Austin, I'm so sorry, I completely ruined your outfit! I promise I'll get the stain out, Quinn."

_Oh my god, where was Austin?_ I wondered. "Okay, I think you need to sit down."

"Oh, nonsense, I'm fine," she said. "See? I'm not drunk. Look." She started walking in a straight line. Yes, it was actually straight. But she was definitely drunk, as well as most of the people in the room.

"Oh, hot damn! This is my jam! Keep me partying 'till the A.M!" Ally sang along as she swayed to the music. She was a really good dancer when she was drinking, surprisingly.

Jesse pushed through people to get to us. "Hey!" he yelled over the music. "Where's Ally? Austin's looking for her; he said he can't find her anywhere."

I pointed to my older friend's dancing form in the crowd, drink in hand. She was having a blast, and I didn't want to stop her, but she was just asking for trouble.

"Oh, okay. Well, I'll go tell Austin I found her," Jesse told me. He gave me a quick kiss and his breath smelled like alcohol, but it didn't bother me. It's not like I've never drank before. Shhh. "Don't let her out of your sight until I get Austin; she looks a little drunk."

"Ya think?" I yelled. He just grinned and moved back through the crowd. I hadn't seen Trish or Dez for most of the night.

I pulled out my phone from my purse to see if I had any messages from my parents but there were none. When I looked back up, Ally was gone. "Oh, this is just flipping perfect," I muttered. "Ally!"

I pushed through everyone, trying to find her, but I couldn't see her.

A few minutes later, I heard her scream, "Who's ready to party!?" I looked up to the response of loud cheers and saw Ally dancing. On a table. With random girls.

"Oh my god," I said, hurrying to get to the front. "Ally, get down from there _now!_"

She didn't hear me; she was too busy grinding to "Sexy and I Know It."

"Am I the only sober one in this joint?" I exclaimed to no one in particular.

"Nope, you've got me," came a voice from beside me. I turned to see Austin.

"Oh, thank god," I sighed. "I can't get her down."

"I can fix that." He got up on the table, wrapped an arm around Ally's waist, and hauled her down, setting her back down on the floor.

"Hey!" she complained. "I was having fun!"

"You can have fun on the ground. And I'm cutting you off, you've had enough for tonight," Austin told her, taking her drink from her. It was a new drink.

"Dez, no, go take care of Trish, you just go find Austin for me, okay? He needs to get on this level," Ally slurred.

Austin looked at me. "How much has she had to drink?"

"I lost count," I admitted. "Have _you_ been drinking?"

"Yeah, but not nearly as much as my tipsy girlfriend here," he replied, grabbing Ally as she took a step and stumbled.

"Where are Dez and Trish?"

"I don't know, I left them with Jesse when I saw Ally on the table. None of them are sober, in case you're wondering. Looks like it's just you and me."

"Joy."

"What happened to your dress?"

"Ally spilled her drink on me."

"I'll buy you a new one," Austin said, but I cut him off.

"Don't worry about it; it was a cheap thing anyway."

He looked doubtful, but didn't push the issue. Ally looked at Austin as if seeing him for the first time that night. "Oh, there you are, babe! Dez did his job! Yay!" She threw her arms around him and kissed him full on the mouth, but he pulled back.

"At least she got the name right this time," I said.

"Quinn, let's go dance, come on," she said, trying to pull me towards the crowd.

"No, Ally, we're going home, I think you've had enough for tonight," Austin said gently. "Let's go."

"I wanna stay! I feel awesome!"

"You aren't going to feel awesome in the morning," he told her before bending down to haul her over his shoulder.

"Woo, a roller coaster! Go go go! Faster!" Ally yelled excitedly.

"Oh my god," Austin said to me. "Never again. Next time, I stay with her all night."

"Deal," I agreed. "Ally?"

No response.

"And she's passed out," I confirmed.

Austin sighed. "I'll go put her in the vehicle. You get the rest of them."

I nodded and went to find everyone else. Turns out they were already on their way out, so I met up with them quickly.

"We're going, Ally's had enough," I said to them.

"I think Dez has too," Trish slurred. "And probably me. And Jesse."

"Yeah, I kind of figured. Come on." Trish and Jesse could walk fine, but I helped Dez out to Austin's SUV, where he was sitting in the very back with Ally out cold on his shoulder.

"She didn't throw up, did she?" I asked.

Austin shook his head. "Nope. Not yet, anyway. It'll be hell for her tomorrow." He handed me the keys. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

**A/N: I loved writing this chapter, I have no shame haha. **

**NOW. Confession time: I'm 16, and I drink. I occasionally have too many, like Ally and the others. But I'm not a bad person. Because let's be real here, teenagers drink. It's inevitable. I'm not saying every teen does drink and that they _have_ to drink, I'm just saying that it happens and you can't stop it. I am one of those teenagers. Sorry for my rant, I just thought you guys should know...too much information maybe? Sorry :/ please don't hate me because of my actions! And if you guys ever wanna talk, or like, tell me something, you can PM me. I love you guys! :D I don't wanna see any of y'all suffering! Anything to confess, just let it out! Or if we have something in common, like the drinking thing or whatever^^^ then tell me. I want to be able to connect with you guys :) I hope I didn't make you guys feel uncomfortable :s Those were not my intentions AT ALL. It's just so we get a better understanding of each other I guess :)**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? r5giirl**

**Instagram? r5giirl**


	27. The Morning After

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, I've been busy with my new job! Thanks for the continued support, I love you guys! I apologize if this chapter is a bit shorter than usual, I'm in a hurry but I wanted to update for you guys because you have been so patient! :)**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A but I own everything else not associated with it.**

* * *

Ally POV

I woke up with an insane headache. I just had time to glance at the clock to see that it was six in the morning and glance at Austin's sleeping form before I felt the contents of last night's events coming up. I bolted to the bathroom and practically threw myself at the toilet, barely making it.

This wasn't my first time being hung over, and the previous night at the club wasn't my first time being drunk either; it was my first time being _extremely_ drunk and having a super bad hangover. Usually I just got minor headaches. Austin didn't even have to tell me how drunk I was; I knew because I barely remembered a thing. But cut me some slack, I was celebrating a big moment in my life.

"Als? You okay?"

I let out a moan. "I feel like my head is being smashed in by a hammer."

"So I'll take that as a no," Austin replied from the other side of the bathroom door.

"Exactly." I proceeded to throw up again, even though I didn't think I had anything left in my stomach.

Austin opened the door and walked in. "Oh god, you don't want to see me like this," I groaned, trying to push him out with the little strength I had. "Ugh, not again!"

"I'm not going to leave you sick in here alone," he said, tying my hair back while I threw up yet again. "Even though it is your fault."

"Don't rub it in," I snapped, leaning against the wall. "At least I had a good time."

"So did I! Until I couldn't find you for the longest time and ended up finding you dancing on a table grinding on random girls."

"I seriously did that?"

Austin nodded. "Oh yeah. Ask Quinn, she babysat you the whole night since she was the only one who could find you. We were all looking for you."

I groaned. "Oh my god. What else did I do?"

"You kept mixing up all our names. You spilled on Quinn's dress, too, and you were just everywhere, to sum it up. Taking shot after shot, drink after drink. I'm surprised you lasted so long."

"What time did we leave?"

"Around one, I think. I had to carry your passed out body to the vehicle."

I grabbed my head. "Never again."

"Oh, I'm sure it'll happen again," Austin chuckled. "You still feel sick?"

I shook my head. "Not right now."

He bent down and put his arms under me. "Let's get you back to bed." He slowly picked me up and carried me out the door.

"Oh, I feel sick again," I said.

"Gross!" Austin shrieked before he dropped me on the bed.

"Asshole!" I exclaimed once I had recovered. I grabbed the bucket that he must have put on the bedside table and threw up again.

"I'm going to call your mom and ask her to keep Maci for another night," Austin said, grabbing his cell phone. "Since I'll be taking care of you all day."

"You're making me sound like I did something horribly wrong," I cried. "I just had too much to drink, big whoop! It happens to the best of us!"

"No, no, babe, I don't mean it like that," Austin said quickly, rubbing my back with one hand while he dialled my mom's number with the other hand. "Come on, I love you to death, alright?"

I grumbled in response. While he went to phone my mom, I lied down and grabbed my phone. It hurt my head to even look at the screen, so I just threw it back down in frustration. "Austin, grab me an Advil when you come back!"

"Already on it!" he yelled from downstairs.

I closed my eyes and just as I was drifting off, Austin came back into the room with a glass of water and an Advil. "Are you even going to be able to keep this down?" he asked.

"Here's hoping," I replied, holding my hand out. He handed me the water and Advil, and I took them.

"Get under the covers," he ordered, pulling them back so I could crawl in. I realized I was still in my dress from the night before.

"Why am I still dressed from last night?" I asked him.

"Because you were passed out and I didn't want to put you in pyjamas. It would be like dressing a dead person; you would flop all over the place."

I rolled my eyes. "Go get me pyjamas. Or at least sweats and a t-shirt."

"Even hung over, you still manage to be bossy," my boyfriend grumbled.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!"

I narrowed my eyes at his back as he rummaged through my dresser in search of comfier clothing for me. He came back with a pair of sweats and one of his shirts.

"Why is my shirt in your dresser?" he asked, handing me the clothes.

"Because your clothes are comfy."

"How many of my shirts are in there?"

"I don't know, like eight," I replied.

"Eight? Well, that explains why I can never find a shirt to wear."

"Awe, babe, don't cry. You can always wear one of my shirts," I teased.

"Ha, no thank you, continue to wear my shirts. Need help?"

"If I do it fast, nope. But I need you to unzip the zipper in the back."

"Okay, turn around."

"I can't turn around in my state! You come behind me," I told him.

He sighed and climbed onto the bed so he could sit behind me and unzip my dress. "Thank you."

"Yep," he said. After much difficulty, I managed to get into the clothes Austin got.

"I'll go get you a cold cloth for your forehead," he said as he hurried to the bathroom. He came back shortly after and made me lie down so he could put the cloth on my forehead. "When it's not cold anymore, call me and I'll go run it under cold water again."

I nodded, and he sat beside me on the bed. "My stomach hurts, too."

He gave me a sympathetic look. "Well, you drank a lot of alcohol last night. Different kinds, too. That makes it worse."

"I feel like throwing up again."

He didn't say anything, just handed me the bucket and held my hair with one hand, rubbing my back with the other.

"Oh my god, just shoot me now," I moaned. I gave him the bucket. "Here, I'm done."

"That's disgusting," he said, putting it on the ground.

I crawled back under the covers. "I feel tired, but I'm not tired."

Austin pushed my hair back from my eyes gently, and bent to kiss my forehead before putting the cloth back on it. "Just try and sleep, alright? You might feel a bit better. Need anything else?" Austin asked me.

"You might wanna go empty that bucket for me," I told him, curling under the covers.

"Ew, do I have to?"

"Yes!" I yelled then winced. "Oh my god, that hurts my head. No talking anymore, bye."

He rolled his eyes and grabbed the bucket. I closed my eyes and tried to sleep off the hangover, but it was more than likely that it wasn't going to work that well.

After a while, I woke up because I had to throw up again, so I ran to the bathroom and did my business. Austin wasn't in the room, so I assumed he was downstairs doing something with Pancakes. Or making food for me. God, I hoped he was making food for me.

When I returned to the bedroom, I drank from the glass of water he got me before and climbed back into bed. My headache wasn't as bad anymore, so I decided now would probably be a good time to check my phone quickly, just in case there was anything important on it.

There was a message from Trish, Quinn, and Jesse.

Trish sent me, _How you feeling, girlfriend? You were a wreck last night._

Quinn said, _How's the hangover Ally? I'm assuming Austin told you about my dress, don't even worry about it, just get better._

Jesse said, _I feel just as bad as you probably do. Guess taking hangovers hard is common between us haha_

I sent them all back, _I feel like I got hit by a train, I'll text you when I'm better. Thanks for the concern!_

"Ally, get off your phone!" Austin said from the doorway.

I jumped and dropped my phone on my face. "Ow! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"I wasn't sneaking up on you; I was walking into the room. That's not going to help your headache, now give it to me."

"No."

"Yes."

"Austin, it's my phone."

"I don't care, hand it over."

I pouted and held it away from him. "But I don't wanna!"

"Ally, I'll count to three. One…two…."

I put it under the covers. "Ha, try and get it now."

He shrugged and climbed onto the bed with me, trying to pull the covers off me. "Austin, it's cold, stop!"

"Then just give me your damn phone, Ally!"

"Ugh, fine!" I pulled it out and handed it to him. "Now let me sleep, please."

"I need to take Pancakes for a walk, she needs to get out. Are you going to be okay here?"

"Yes, I'll be fine. I'm just going to try and sleep," I told him.

He brushed my hair away from my face. "I won't be gone long."

I was already drifting off again when he left the room. When I woke up again, I felt slightly better, but still slightly nauseous, even though there was nothing left in my stomach. You know what I mean?

I glanced around the room and saw that Austin was looking out the window. He heard me groan and turned around. "Hey," he said softly, coming over. "How do you feel?"

"Still pretty shitty," I croaked. "What time is it?"

"Two in the afternoon."

"It's only two?" I moaned. "It feels later than that. I just want this day to be over."

"Do you think you can try eating something? Even if it's just crackers?"

"Go ahead and get me something if you want, but I don't know if I'll keep it down."

"Dry toast usually works. I'll get you another glass of water, too." He grabbed my glass and went back downstairs, coming back up shortly after with another cold cloth as well.

"You're just on the ball," I smiled softly, taking the water and cloth from him.

"Well, I kind of figured the cloth would be warm by now. Here's your toast. Just eat it whenever you can."

I sighed and sipped some water. It was quiet for a few moments before I said, "Hey, Austin?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks," I told him. "For looking after me. You're the best."

He grinned. "Of course, because I'm awesome."

"Okay, don't get too cocky," I told him.

He laughed. "I'm kidding. You're welcome, Als, anything for you."

"I would kiss you, but you don't want to kiss these lips right now," I said.

"And you have no idea how right about that you are. I'll settle for a kiss on the forehead." He bent over and kissed it. "There." I smiled. He was the best.

* * *

**A/N: Review it up! This was lightly based on one of my bad hangovers I got lol not all of it though. I obviously don't have a boyfriend to help me. *SIGH* Love you guys! xx **

**I'm starting a new story! It's called Hate at First Sight, and I don't have a summary yet, but I've got the first couple of chapters done! It will probably be up later tonight or tomorrow when I get back from visiting relatives :) Keep an eye out for it!**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? r5giirl**

**Instagram? r5giirl**


	28. Nacho Plates & Coffee Dates

**A/N: I always get this satisfied feeling when I manage to update a story two days in a row. That's a rare occurrence haha**

**Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter, glad y'all loved it! :)**

**Disclaimer: don't own A&A.**

* * *

Ally POV

"Quinn, I seriously feel so bad, just let me buy you another dress," I told her over the phone. It was a few days after the club and I was finally done with the hangover. NEVER AGAIN.

"Ally, it's okay, it was a cheap thing anyways. Don't worry about it!"

"Well, let me take you out for coffee or something then."

She sighed. "You never quit, do you?"

"Nope. I'll pick you up in an hour!"

"Alright, see you then," she said.

We hung up and I turned to Maci, who was bouncing in her jumper. "Well, mommy tried, but Auntie Quinn won't let me buy her a new dress. So stubborn."

"Sounds like someone else I know," Austin said as he came into the living room, Pancakes trailing behind. She went over and sat beside Maci, resting her head on the side of the jumper protectively.

"Oh hush," I told Austin.

"What did Quinn say about the dress?" He asked, flopping down beside me with his plate of nachos.

I turned sideways, throwing my legs on top of his his. "She won't let me buy her a new one, so I'm taking her out for coffee in an hour."

"I didn't think she would let you," he said, shoving a nacho in his mouth. "It's Quinn. Besides, it's not like you could help it; you were wasted."

"Yes, we know how drunk I was. Please stop reminding me!"

"I should be reminding you since you can remember anything from that night," he shot back.

"Hey, I faintly remember taking shots with Quinn standing beside me. And she yelled at me."

Austin looked at me. "She never yelled at you."

"Oh. Guess my memory _is_ fuzzy."

"Duh," he replied.

I reached over and tried to grab a nacho, but he slapped my hand. "Hands off, these are my famous nachos. The cheesiest ones you'll _ever_ find."

"Not true. Your dad's are to die for."

"With the exception of dad's," Austin sighed in defeat. "But where do you think I learned how to make them?"

"Wanna go make me some since you love me? I'm starving."

Austin looked at Maci. "What do you think, Mace? Should I make mommy food, or let her starve?"

Maci giggled and clapped her hands. "No, honey, that wasn't an answer," Austin said.

I laughed. "Please go make me some?"

"Well, since you said please, I guess so." I pulled my legs off his so he could stand up.

"Thanks, babe!" I called after him. "Better make them quick, I have to pick Quinn up!"

"Perfection takes time," he replied from the kitchen.

I picked Maci out of her jumper and carried her into the kitchen. "Can you watch her while I go get ready?"

My boyfriend motioned for me to put her down, so I did and let her play with Pancakes on the ground while I hurried upstairs to change. It was cooling off outside now that it was nearing winter, so I put on skinny jeans with a grey long sleeved shirt and a red infinity scarf. I slipped on ankle boots and left my hair down, spraying on some perfume before heading back down.

"You're lucky I finished making them," Austin said, sliding the plates of cheesy nachos towards me as I sat down at the counter.

"These look delicious," I said as I ate one. "Oh my god, these are so good. From now on, you make me nachos, I don't buy them anymore."

"Only if you pay me."

"Austin!"

He burst out laughing. "I'm kidding! You should have seen your face!"

"That's not funny," I glared.

"Maci thinks it is, so that's two against one." He motioned for me to look down and Maci was sitting there smiling at Austin.

"Or she's just being remotely adorable towards you," I told him.

"Either way is good."

I smiled and rolled my eyes before finishing off the nachos. "I'm going, I don't know when I'll be back," I told Austin, putting my plate in the sink.

"Just call me or something if you'll be out late. And no drinking!"

"Of course I'm not going to drink, I have to drive!" I said, shocked that he would even say that.

"You do have another girl with you who has her driver's license," Austin pointed out.

"It's a coffee shop, you idiot."

He pretended to stab himself in the heart. "Now that hurt."

I rolled my eyes and stood up to kiss him. "I'll see you later."

"Bye," he replied, picking Maci up. "Come on, sweetie; let's go watch My Little Pony. I want to see what happens to Rainbow Dash after her and Apple Jack got in that big fight. Drama!"

Still as childish as ever.

I shook my head and went out to my car. When I arrived at Quinn's house, she was sitting on the steps with Leah, so I parked and got out.

"Hey, Ally," they both greeted as I walked up to them.

"Hey! How are you, Leah? I haven't seen you since you got out of the hospital."

"I'm good," she smiled. She still had the bruise on her cheek and cuts, but she looked happier. She just got out a couple of days earlier, so she wasn't dressed like she usually was. She just had sweatpants and a hoodie on, her curly brown hair pulled into a bun. "I heard you had a fun time this past weekend."

I groaned. "You told her?" I said to Quinn.

She grinned. "I had to, it was too funny not to. She was dying the whole time."

Leah started laughing. "As if you called Quinn Austin. That's priceless! When I turn 21, please do that again so I can be there to watch."

"Oh god, I don't think I'll be doing that again anytime soon. My hangover was horrible, Austin had to nurse me the whole day," I said.

"I was playing nurse for Jesse. He was so bad, too. I talked to Trish and she said she and Dez were fine." Quinn shrugged. "Guess they can hold alcohol better. They also didn't mix a bunch of different kinds." She raised her eyebrow at me.

"Okay, we get it, I have a wild side," I said, throwing my hands up, making the two sisters laugh. "Can we go now?"

"Yeah," Quinn said, standing up. "See you later, Leah."

"Bye guys," Leah said, waving as we walked down the sidewalk back to the car.

"Is that a new shirt?" I asked Quinn as I drove off. "It looks good. You know, without a big beer stain on it."

She rolled her eyes. "Knock it off, Ally. I told you it's fine." She actually was wearing a new shirt though. It was a hot pink tank top with black accents on the front. Her hair was thrown back into a low bun with some braids twisted into it. She was so effortlessly beautiful.

"I still feel bad," I told her.

"Well don't."

I sighed and turned the music up. "Oh, this is my jam!" Quinn said, turning it up more.

I eyed her as I stopped at a red light. "You like this song?" It was a hardcore rock song.

She nodded. "Oh yeah, this is my kind of music."

"Really? I didn't peg you as the kind of girl that listened to this stuff."

"Are you kidding me?" she practically laughed. "Look at me!" She gestured to all of her piercings up her ear and her nose ring, and to her bleached hair.

"I was being sarcastic," I said.

"You need to work on your sarcasm, girl."

I smiled, and the light turned green. We arrived at the coffee shop ten minutes later.

"What do you want?" I asked as we went in.

"Non-fat soy mocha latte with milk and shot of caramel and whip cream," Quinn told me.

"Okay, you can tell the cashier that because I already forget what you just told me," I said, taking out my wallet.

"Well, what do you get?"

"A caramel latte," I said. "I'm kind of boring."

"Clearly," Quinn laughed as we went up to order. When we sat down at the table, my phone rang.

"Who would that be?" I said to myself as I dug it out of my purse. "Hello?"

"Ally? Is Quinn with you?"

"Jesse?" Quinn looked at me at the mention of her boyfriend's name. "Um, yeah she is, just a second." I handed Quinn my phone and shrugged. "He wants to talk to you."

She looked confused but took it. "Hello? Why didn't you just call my cell?" She paused and looked down at the pockets of her jeans. "Oh, I didn't even realize I didn't have it with me…If you already fed her then there's nothing else, she's probably just grumpy. Try putting her down for a nap if you want, but if she doesn't stop, then just leave her and let her cry, she'll stop eventually…Okay, bye." She hung up and handed my phone back to me. "Here."

"Is Jesse watching Sheridan or something?" I asked.

"Yeah, I just needed somebody to watch her for today because I was busy helping my mom with errands. My dad isn't home, Jace is still in Orlando, and I'm not leaving Sheridan with Leah alone yet," Quinn replied, taking a sip of her latte. "So Jesse offered."

"That was nice of him," I commented.

"Yeah, he loves watching her. Except when she throws tantrums, like she apparently is now. But really, nobody likes dealing with grouchy kids, even parents. He can handle her."

"You deserve a break," I said.

Quinn gave a small smile. "She's been sucking the energy out of me lately. Even just a day without her is good."

"Maci has been spending a lot of time at either mine or Austin's parents house since she won't get to see them that often when Austin's tour starts."

"You guys are going with him?"

"We haven't decided for sure," I admitted. "I mean, I've always gone with him for shows and tours, but this is the first tour with a baby. Maci wouldn't be able to last for that long."

"That's true," Quinn agreed. "You could just leave her with your parents or Austin's parents while you're gone."

"We would miss her way too much," I said. "Besides, my mom and dad are going on vacation soon, and Austin's parents are too busy at their store to be watching a kid for three months."

"Oh, I see. Well, when does the tour start?"

"In two weeks."

She whistled. "Better decide quickly whether or not you and Maci are going with him."

I sighed. "I know. I think Austin is avoiding the topic, to be honest."

"More than likely. He probably doesn't want to have to talk about the possibility of having to leave his girls behind for three months."

"I don't want to be away from him for that long, either. But Maci's needs come first."

"Of course they do."

While we sipped our coffees in silence, I couldn't help but wonder about the possibility of being separated from Austin so long. I never missed a show, or tour. Would I be able to handle it?

* * *

**A/N: Cute little chapter I loved writing :) Review it up, guys!**

**Oh, and my new story is up, if you didn't already know! Again, it's called Hate at First Sight and I would really appreciate if you guys would take the time to go check it out! I'm super excited about it :) I think you will love it!**

**Love you all!**

**Joelle xx**

**twitter? r5giirl**

**Instagram? r5giirl**


End file.
